Extraordinary
by TotallyNonchalantFBI
Summary: The shipwreck never happened, but fate  and me  dictates that Ariel and Eric wil still meet. Sadly, there is Seamus and Ursula trying to stop it all. Disclaimer: own nothing, wish i did. ArielxEric
1. Tumbling

**So I decided, against the other three hundred people doing this, to write a little mermaid fanfic. As of right now, I'm thinking about making this a one-shot, but if you people want me to continue, I shall! But I've been in a Disney-licious mood lately, most because I'M GOING! : D! yay! And also, who DOESN'T like the Princess movies? I mean, really? Come on now, you can't hide it! *evil laugh for good measure* Without further ado, cue the sisters, start the plot, let the story commence! Reviews are always a delight, as always. Show your writers that you care!**

_I'm breaking my back_

_Just to know your name_

_Seventeen tracks_

_And I've had it with this game_

_-Somebody Told Me_

_The Killers_

The day had just begun. The sea was peaceful and calm, and in Triton's palace, seven daughters slept, blankets tucked around shoulders, stomachs rising and falling with the tide. Their heads were buried into their seaweed and algae pillows, and Aquata had a little stuffed seahorse hugged to her left cheek. Like clockwork, Attina sat up in her bed, and began to sing.

_Well Good Morning!_

_Good morning! _

_It's finally time to get up!_

The other sisters began to wake:

_Aquata! That's my name, and I'll say it with pride!_

_Attina! That's my name, and I'll try not to chide!_

_Artista! That's my name, and one day I'll be famous!_

_Andrina! That's my name, and I'm marrying Seamus! [swoon]_

_Adella! That's my name, and I love all my sisters!_

_Alana! That's my name, and I love all the misters!_

_And our youngest baby sister, we introduce with joy!_

_Her name is…_

Ariel's six sisters sat up in their beds, singing their morning song. This is how they liked to wake up, singing and doing very, very carefully choreographed tail swirled and shoulder shakes. They belted out their tunes and batted their eyelashes.

All this stopped, when they turned to look at their baby sister, who was sleeping. Still. The cleared their throat and looked at her. Once again, she ruined their perfectly prearranged plans. It was very frustrating! They weren't sure if she was frustrated with a small part, or couldn't remember when to in. Sadly, they were beginning to realize that Ariel just didn't care. Attina swum over and shook her baby sister's shoulder.

"Mmmm…go away…"Ariel mumbled and turned over, clutching her pillow.

"Oh, no! Ariel, you wake up! Now!" Attina said.

"Ariel…" Artista whined. "You ruined our song…_again_."

"What time is it?" Ariel mumbled, ignoring Artista. The little redhead looked out the window. Once she spotted the sunlight beams shining down, she jumped out of bed and swam out of the room and down, down, out of the palace.

"If she forgets my engagement ball…" Andrina said. "I do something to her. I don't know what I'll do, but something."

"Don't worry Andrina!" Alana chirped. "Ariel may be forgetful, but that's just rude. As if you haven't reminded her hundreds of times!"

"Alana, that girl could forget something nailed to her forehead." Andrina shook her head and swam off to the bathroom.

The next twelve hours would be prep. The ball was scheduled for six, and Andrina had to make sure no one would ever, ever forget this night.

…

One thing Seamus would never understand is Andrina's complete and total devotion to keeping him sheltered from her littlest sister. Hundreds of times, he had met her father, her other five sisters, but never….Annie? Andrea? Abby? He couldn't even remember her name!

Did she doubt that he really loved her? Or worse, was there something wrong with her sister? Did she have a mental disorder or freaky behavior? Seamus tried to believe this for the longest time, but he felt that Andrina would have explained everything, had it been as simple as that. This was not an all-encompassing problem, he was still able to function as normal, and Andrina did not notice anything different. Which was good, for she did have quite a tendency to nag.

It was only two hours until the engagement ball, and Seamus was nervous beyond belief. At first he thought it was just usual jitters, but then he began to wonder, what if it wasn't? What if he wasn't ready to get married? What if Andrina just wasn't _the one_? These thoughts naturally spun him into worse and worse confusion.

Eventually he realized he just had to go for a swim. He grabbed a time-keeper so he wouldn't be late to the ball and headed out of his house, hoping with each swimming stroke that his heart wouldn't give out later.

…

"See Flounder, I told you we hadn't seen this one before!" Ariel sighed. She did a flip and rested on the floorboards of the _Mercury King. _

"Did you hear something?" Flounder asked, freezing in place, eyes going wide. "Wh-wh-what if it's a shark? Just like last time?"

"Oh Flounder, you're such a guppy! What are the odds of that happening again?" Ariel sighed.

There was a bump underneath the floorboards and the two heard a muffled "ouch!" Flounder swam into Ariel's arms and Ariel began to look around for a way out.

"Ariel! There's someone here!" Flounder whispered.

"Shh…I know, I know! How do we get out? The exit is down there!" Ariel panicked, swiveling her head around.

The two friends tried to peek around the stairs, trying to see if it was friend or foe. They were praying for a friend, but the outlook was not so good. Ariel swam forward tentatively, Flounder just hid behind her. Ariel's heart was pounding, she jumped at every shadow. She felt something-somefish- behind her. Her heart sped up, she felt as if she was going to cry. She took a few deep breaths, turned around, and screamed.

"Who are you? What are you doing here? Oh my gosh!" the merman asked her.

"Me? What are YOU doing here? You nearly scared me out of my wits!" Ariel yelled: her fear replaced with anger. "Explain yourself!"

"Ok, ok!" the merman said. He pushed back his wavy black hair and looked up. He had green eyes. Ariel didn't notice. "Well I'm getting married, to-to Princess Andrina, and-"

"Wait, wait!" Ariel said, holding up a hand. "_You're_ marrying my _sister_? You're Seamus, aren't you?"

"Oh my God! You must be Ariel!" Seamus grabbed her hands, but instantly dropped them. His hands felt…different when he held hers. He settled for looking into her eyes. Her gorgeous, big blue eyes. No, he had to stop thinking like this!

"Yes, I am! I've- I've never met you before!"

"I know!" Seamus proclaimed, feeling happier than ever before. "I can't believe I've met you!"

By chance, Seamus took a peek at his time-keeper, at saw that he was already late for his own engagement ball! "Oh gosh, I have to go! It's time for the – the engagement ball!"

"Oh no!" Ariel slapped a hand to her forehead. "The engagement ball! My father's gonna kill me!" She swam out of the ship, with Flounder tagging along, leaving Seamus floating there.

…

Andrina was swimming back and forth outside a seaweed curtain, her eyes filled with tears.

"Oh, where is he? I'll KILL him!" she whined.

"Don't worry! I'm sure he'll be here just before your entrance!" Alana reassured her, laying a hand on her sister's shoulder. "He's probably just trying to look the best he can for you!"

"I'm here! So sorry!" Seamus cried, swimming into the room.

"Where the hell were you?" Andrina demanded. "If I had to go out there by myself, I would never be able to show my face in public again! How could you do this to me?" Andrina shoved him against the wall.

"Andrina! Calm down!" Seamus grabbed her hands and looked into her eyes. They were brown, unlike Ariel's…

Andrina's breathing began to slow down as she began to regain control of herself. "Let's go!"

The two merpeople entered through the curtain and descended to the podium.

Andrina smiled and began, "people of Atlantica! It is my great pleasure to announce my engagement to Seamus AlGee! Seamus, forever I will love you and stand by your side. I will never not take great joy to be by your side, to be your wife."

Seamus did not even look at her the entire time she was saying this. He scanned the crowd, until he finally saw Ariel sneak in through the back door. His breath caught in his chest as he saw her in a flowing purple top, with her hair pulled back with pearls.

"Andrina." He turned to her, the realization finally reaching him. "I cannot marry you. I am sorry."

He swam off the balcony, into the back where Ariel stood. Ariel's eyes grew big and she swam away. Andrina looked off, realizing her worst fear had indeed come true.


	2. Consequences and Rewards

**Well what's interesting about this fanfic above all my others is that my plot for this one is changing constantly! That usually doesn't happen for me…Ah well, I'm sure once I reach a certain point it'll all fall into place. I'm just afraid that place will be the end, lol. And even though I was considering making this a one-shot, I don't think I could just leave the story where I did! Come on, that's just a little cruel.**

_I got problems up to here_

_I got people in my ear _

_Tellin' me these crazy things_

_That I don't wanna know_

_-Glamorous_

_Fergie_

Ariel was panicking. Surely, she must just be spinning this all out of proportion! There was no way Seamus just broke off his engagement, _for her_! No, no, they barely knew each other! This was unreasonable, this was illogical! She finally sat down in her shell bed, tearing the pearls bands out of her hair, and trying very hard not to cry. Why was this happening to her?

"Ariel!"

Ariel froze for a second, then whipped her head around and saw Seamus, floating by the end of her bed.

"What are you doing here! Go away!" Ariel yelled, shrinking back into her pillow.

"Ariel, please just listen to me!"

"No! What are you even _thinking_! Go back, marry Andrina! What are you doing?" Ariel said, clutching the side of her shell bed so hard her knuckles turned white.

"Ariel, please! I know I haven't known you for that long, but I feel this, this _connection_ to you! I need to be able to get to know you better, and it would be unethical to try to get to know you while married to your sister! That would just hurt everything and everyone!" Seamus tried to reason, moving closer to Ariel.

"Seamus! It doesn't matter! Do you have any idea what you've done to my family!" Ariel said, her voice starting to waver.

Seamus sat down next to Ariel and began to lean in.

"SEAMUS! ARIEL!"

Andrina burst into the room. Seamus jumped, and Ariel just fell backwards onto her pillow.

"How could you do this to me!" Andrina yelled. "SEAMUS! How dare you just, just leave me there! You could not have told me before! I'll never be able to show my face in public! I'm amazed I haven't died from embarrassment yet! And ARIEL! How could you go and steal away my fiancé? I thought sisters didn't do this to each other!"

"Andrina! Look, I'm sorry about everything that happened, but I did nothing to try and lead him on! I never met him until I ran into him by the shipwreck! I promise I-"

"Oh Ariel, just stop! It's obvious my happiness is too much to ask from you! You always had to be the best, didn't you! Well I'm-"

"Andrina! Please just listen!"

"No Ariel! I don't want to see you ever again! I HATE YOU!"

Ariel stopped for a moment, then took a deep breath, trying to hold in her tears and swam, out the window and far, far away.

…

"Oh, my poopsies, tell me something I want to hear. So long I have gone without _any good news_." Ursula slithered out of her corner and approached Flotsam and Jetsam, her minions.

"Mistresssss, we bring only good news." The two eels hissed. "Ariel is being forcccced out from the family by her sistersss. Andrina has losssst her fiancé beccccausssse of the leetle mermaid."

"Excellent! With the already weakened family, removing Ariel could cause Triton's undoing! We must find a way to get her away, far, far away!"

Ursula began to swim forward, her ideas coming quicker and quicker! "Flotsam! Jetsam! Here, go get me these potion ingredients, I do believe I have an idea…"

…

"Ariel, you really shouldn't be up here!" Flounder said, nudging Ariel's shoulder.

"Flounder, I didn't do anything! I hate that they're all just, just so against me! Why couldn't I be up here, in the human world? Look how peaceful everything is. There's the sun, and the beach. People can dance and run and skip and they have so much more than we do!"

Flounder looked at Ariel, he knew there was no disagreeing with her on this. Ariel had always loved humans. Ariel looked back at the ocean, then at the beach again. She dove underwater and swam so fast Flounder was barely able to keep up.

…

"Ariel! What are you doing here?" Flounder nudged Ariel, hoping that she just didn't realize that they we're outside Ursula's lair!

"I'm going to talk to Ursula. I have to become a human, I'm not wanted here." Ariel said, her voice showing no emotion.

"No, Ariel! Please don't!" Flounder tried, but even he knew it was worthless.

Ariel swam faster and faster into the lair, head held high. "Ursula!" she called, looking around and around, hoping that she'd be here, she just had to be!

"Come in, come in my darling! We mustn't lurk in doorways, it's _rude_. One might question your upbringing. Ha! "

Ariel suddenly felt a sinking fear in her stomach, she looked back. Would she regret this? No, she had to do this. It was the only way she'd be happy.

"Now I'm not one for formalities, and I do believe I know why you're here." Ursula sat down in front of Ariel, a basin between them. "Now, now sit down. You want to become _human_, don't you? Now I understand, of course, they do have it much better up there than we do down here!"

"Could you do it?" Ariel asked, leaning in.

"My dear, of course I can! However, there is the matter of payment. You can't get something for nothing you know." Ursula smirked, pressing her fingers together.

"But I don't have any money!" Ariel said.

"I don't need money! I'm already living in riches!" Ursula said sarcastically. "However, I would like a lock of your hair." Ursula ran her fingers through Ariel's red hair, causing Ariel to cringe. "It's very beautiful, and I would like a little of it."

Ariel took a deep breath, "Fine."

Ursula handed Ariel a knife. "Cut it. Now."

Ariel took a chunk of her perfectly parted hair and sliced through it. The hair flopped sideways, giving her big red bangs. She handed the hair to Ursula, who stuck it in a bottle and put it on one of many shelves. Ursula zoomed around the lair, taking different ingredients and throwing them into the basin in front of Ariel. The potion started to boil, and Ariel shrunk back. Flounder was hiding in the corner.

The potion bubbling, Ursula sunk down in front of Ariel. She smirked, and then dumped the scalding potion on the mermaid. Ariel screamed as her tail ripped into two legs. Her gills turned into lungs, and she felt as if she couldn't breathe. She tried to swim for the surface, but found she just sunk deeper. Flounder swam under her arm and dragged her to the surface as fast as his fins could carry him.

Ariel gasped, and lay there on the beach, panting. She didn't even notice Flounder was swimming back home. She tried to stand, but fell. She kept trying and trying until she could eventually support her weight. She had feet! Feet! She could run and skip and dance! She spent the next few hours doing just that. Eventually Ariel realized she wasn't wearing anything but her shell bra. She walked down the beach until she saw a clothesline, with a few dresses hanging out to dry. Ariel chose a simple purple one and slid it over her head. The fabric was soft to her touch.

The sun had set hours ago, and the moon glistened off the tide. Ariel, not knowing where else to go, lay down on the beach in front of the castle and went to sleep.

…

It was dawn. Eric stood at the top of the pier, smirking as yet another rejected princess sailed away. She was probably the worst off all. She was annoying quiet sometimes, but would otherwise be nagging in that nasal voice of hers. She was nosy, rude, snarky, and could not understand or accept Eric's love of the ocean. She demanded many dresses to be made for her in this kingdom, and wore only a small fraction of them anyway! She followed Eric all about, and when he tried to take her out to the ocean, she merely screamed and jumped back, complaining about the sand in her toes and the salt on her hem.

Eric smiled and walked back down the pier. To celebrate her departure he headed down to the ocean. He kicked off his boots and rolled up his pants. He looked down the beach and saw…red! Lots of red! He wasn't sure what it was, and his curiosity eventually got the best of him. He sprinted down the beach. He took one look and fell to his knees.

It was a girl.

"Oh God, oh God." He mumbled, brushing her red hair out of her eyes.

Was she, dead? He put his fingers on her neck and felt a pulse. No, she was alive. She must have been shipwrecked. He stroked her head, waiting for her to wake up. He couldn't help noticing just how…beautiful she was. She had bright red hair and was tiny, but not as if she was about to break. As she began to stir he drew his hand back.

"Miss, are you…okay?"

She sat up with a jerk, but seemed to quickly register that she wasn't in any danger.

"Yes, yes I'm fine. Who are you?"

"Oh sorry, I'm…" Eric paused for a moment. Did it seem arrogant to tell her that he was a prince? "I'm Eric." He grabbed her hand and picked her up, drawing her a little closer to himself. "You must be freezing! Here, come back to the castle with me, we'll get you cleaned up and you can stay as long as you like!"

"Thank you! That sounds lovely. Oh, my name is Ariel."

"Ariel" Eric paused for a moment. "That's a really pretty name."

…

Ariel had been cleaned up and dressed in a blue dress of her liking.

"Do you want to do something?" Eric asked her. "You spent the whole day just cleaning up!"

"Oh I _know_!" Ariel laughed. "Thank you for everything, but I must admit I'm sort of antsy…"

"Well what do you want to do? There's a library…" Eric suggesting, due to all princesses before had spent their free time sewing in there, liking the importance of being surrounded by books, but not wanting to actually read them.

"Not so much, I'll read later. Ariel stretched her arms. She looked out the window. "I'd like to go swimming!" She missed the ocean - but she loved being a human!

Eric's smile appeared instantly and spread across his face. He had never_, never_ met a girl who would voluntarily go into the ocean! Without it even being suggested by him!

"Let's go!" he grabbed her hand to pull her along, but Ariel seemed to take that as a challenge. She sprinted even faster down the hallways, and ran down a big set of stairs into the ocean. Eric followed her in. They swam and splashed each other. Ariel would dive under the water and come up with seaweed in her hair. She swam out to a set of rocks and lay on them. Eric later joined her. She was just lying there, quietly.

"Whatcha doin'?" Eric asked.

"Looking at the sky. It's the only thing that's the same both on land and under the sea." Ariel said, turning her head toward Eric.

Eric took her hand and pulled himself up on the rock. "I guess I never thought about it that way…"

Ariel was looking at the sky, but Eric was looking at Ariel. He could see the wonder in her big blue eyes, and she seemed like a child, but also like an adult. He had never known someone for such a short time and felt such _a connection_. There were no girls like her, they were ordinary.

She was extraordinary.

She giggled as she ran her fingers over the algae on the rock. It tickled.

"Ariel?" Eric asked.

She turned toward him, "yes?"

He kissed her.


	3. A Vial for the Vile

**Ah, stories. As soon as you think everything is going swimmingly, the stupid author has to go and throw another conflict in there! Annoying, right? Ah well, if they didn't we would all be reading books like "Dick and Jane". And as great as they were at age 5, by 15 they get a little annoying.**

**Thanks for all your reviews everyone! I love you all! 3**

**Clairifications:**

**The Singing Sisters: The song was stupid, it was out of the blue, but that's the point. I always saw the sisters as more in-sync –and more shallow- than Ariel. She was original and offbeat. I felt like that would be something they would do. **

**Flounder swimming away: As much as he loves Ariel, he doesn't like what she did. He feels like there's nothing he can do and swim away. Ariel is too wrapped up her new life to notice that he even left.**

**But thanks for pointing that out!**

**And a question for my readers. I've gotten some reviews saying they were "skeptical" at first. What do you mean by skeptical? Like, of what? No hate, I love the reviews but I would like to make sure I make this the best I can! :D**

_Come Monday_

_It'll be all right_

_Come Monday_

_I'll be holding you tight_

_I spent four lonely days_

_In a brown L.A. haze_

_And I just want you back at my side_

_-Come Monday_

_Jimmy Buffett_

"Ariel wake up!"

"Huh?" Ariel jerked up. She was still lying on the flat, cool rock, Eric by her side. His hand was on hers. Did he just kiss her? Could he really have just done that? Her heart beat faster and faster.

"You just fell asleep! It is peaceful out here, but c'mon. One minute you were talking to me, and the next you're asleep!" Eric laughed, his eyes smiling.

Ariel still wasn't sure what had happened. "What was the last thing I did before I fell asleep?"

"Um…you we're telling me about the moon and the sea, and you fell asleep for like ten minutes." Eric said.

"Oh." Ariel sat up and put her head on her knees. So it was just a dream. Her heart went back to normal speed and her stomach sunk.

"You must be tired. We should probably go back to the castle." Eric suggested.

He slid off the rock and grabbed Ariel's hand. She started to inch on down, but her feet _were_ new, and she slipped. Eric grabbed her and jerked her in closer to himself, in order to keep her from hitting her head. She gasped.

"You okay?" Eric asked.

"Yeah", Ariel fidgeted. "I'm…great."

Eric suddenly seemed uncomfortable and put her down. "C'mon let's go before Carlotta has my head."

Ariel laughed and the two walked back to the castle, hand in hand.

…

Seamus was confused, so, so confused. He thought by proclaiming his love and dedication to Ariel she would instantly fall in love with him. Why was she scared? Where did she go? He was confused at first, but as time passed he just became angry. She hurt him, but he was going to get her back. And screw anyone who might try to stop him.

He eventually came up with a plan. He snuck out of the kingdom as soon as night fell and swam out to the middle of the ocean: Ursula's lair.

"Ursula?" he asked, peeking around the corner.

"Oh _child_, come in, come in! I've been expecting you!" Ursula chortled.

"You-you _have_?" Seamus asked, confused.

"Why yes! I know all, see all! I can show you anything." Ursula smirked. "However, why don't you tell me in your own words?"

Seamus inhaled. "It's my love, Ariel. I haven't seen her in days! The whole kingdom is looking for her, but it would be easier just for you to tell me. Understand this, I have to find her. I have to see her again."

"Let me show you her." Ursula smiled.

She mixed together different ingredients inside her basin. The potion emitted different puffs of smoke and gave off the odor of cinnamon. Eventually a pearly ball of smoke rose from the bubbling red potion. Ursula sat down again, waving her hands until a picture became clearer.

"Look." Ursula commanded. "See her, she walks on feet. She is no longer a mermaid, dear boy. Oh ho! Not just that, but she's made a _friend_. There he is, he takes her hand. Oh, _how cute_. They're _in wuv_." Ursula cackled.

Seamus gripped the table so hard his knuckles turned white. "_Who is he_?"

"Prince Eric", Ursula said, popping her lips on the "P". "and if you don't work quickly, he'll be hers, and not _yours_. So you little lovebird, you know where she is. You know who she's with. The question is, what are you going to do about it?"

"I knew I'd have to do something." Seamus sighed. "Can you make her love me again?"

"Well…there is the matter of paym-"

Seamus through a sack of gold, jewels, and Andrina's jewelry into Ursula's lap.

Ursula smirked. "Let's get started, shall we? Now first you'll need a love potion."

Ursula took the bottle containing Ariel's lock of hair and poured in several glittery mixes. She snipped off a lock of Seamus' hair and added it. She corked the bottle and shook it together.

"Here. She must drink the potion, or it will not work. Slip it into her drink, whatever."

"Can anything break the enchantment?" Seamus asked, eyebrows raised.

"Only true love. However, no one will touch her once she is married to you. So if the spell is broken, you would have done it, meaning she truly loved you. If the spell never breaks…well you still have your little mermaid, now don't you?" Ursula smirked.

"You're a genius!" Seamus exclaimed. "But how do I give it to her?"

"Darling, it's simple! The only way to get what you want, is to become a human yourself!"

Seamus looked into the bubble again. He watched the black-haired man twirl Ariel around and around again. He felt jealously in the pit of his stomach. Why could he never get what he wanted? Every time he thought he had the best of something, he would be proved wrong. His parents hadn't given him much, but they had taught him this: when you have the best, you are the best.

…

"_Oh Seamus, I love you." Leah said, leaning on his shoulder._

"_Mhm." He responded, looking at the girl on his right._

_She was his fiancé, the first he would ever have. She had deep brown hair, and big green eyes. She was quite slim, and had a bright red tail. She was probably the prettiest girl in the kingdom. Yes, Seamus was this close to having the nicest, prettiest, best wife in the ocean._

_And then he saw her._

_She had bright blond hair pulled into an updo. Her tail and shells were a light purple color. She had pale skin and brown eyes. She was even skinnier than Leah, and far more graceful._

"_Who is she?" he nudged his fiancé, pointing to the girl._

"_Princess Andrina." She whispered back._

"_Lord, she's beautiful." Seamus mumbled. "And she's rich, and powerful…"_

"_Seamus!" Leah snapped, eyes wide._

"_I'm going to talk to her." Seamus swam off._

_Leah grabbed his tail, "Seamus, no!"_

"_Why not, what's your problem?"_

"_You can't just go off and flirt with other girls while you're engaged to me! If you go flirt with her, we-we-we're broken up! So it's her or me!"_

"_Can't I just talk to her for five minutes?" Seamus rolled his eyes. He swam off towards the girl, Leah's mouth hung open. She threw her ring at him, but it just rolled off his back._

…

"So you'll turn me into a human?" Seamus cocked an eyebrow.

"Yes. Take this potion, and hold onto it tightly. Take these, they're called pants. You'll want them later. Sit still, I'm making an extra powerful potion."

Ursula zoomed around the room, throwing ingredients into the basin, jar and all. Eventually a big yellow bubble encircled Seamus, turning his tail into legs. The bubble spit him out, and up through a hole in the lair. Seamus felt his cheeks being pushed back as he rocketed up to the surface, faster than he could ever swim.

…

What the hell was wrong with that girl? Andrina locked herself in the bathroom, sitting in the tub. Two days, _two days_, Ariel had been gone. No word, no note, just leaves. But not after destroying her life! Ariel stole Seamus from her, and then just leaves. He won't come back to Andrina, but as if she would take him back anyway!

But despite everything, Andrina couldn't help but worry for her baby sister. Ariel did have a tendency to be careless, and was the perfect target to a fishing mishap. What if she died, what if they never saw each other again? As bad as that was, the last conversation she had with Ariel was just yelling, blaming. How could she live knowing that her baby sister was probably snagged by some fish-eater's hook?

She had to do something.

"Daddy! DADDY!" she swam all around the palace.

"Yes? Andrina, are you okay?" King Triton asked.

"Daddy, of course I'm not! How could anyone in the kingdom be okay, while Ariel has probably been snagged by a human?"

"Oh Andrina, I never thought of that…"Triton whispered. "You're right, aren't you?"

"Of course I am! Daddy, we have to make sure this never, ever happens to anyone ever again! I never want anyone to feel the pain we do now."

"You're right. Humans! They're barbarians! First they killed your mother, and now they've snatched your sister! We'll launch a campaign, warn every merman! Let no one be touched by these barbarians ever again!" Triton boomed.

"Oh Daddy!" Andrina pulled him into a hug.

"Listen to me, for I mean this with all my heart. If I ever, _ever_ catch a human anywhere near one of my daughters ever again, I will kill him. On the spot."

…

"Good Morning!" Carlotta bustled into Ariel's room.

"Uggg…" Ariel moaned flipping the pillow over her head.

"Oh honey, you've got to see this! You'll never guess what happened, the odds are impossible!" Carlotta exclaimed laying out a bright green dress for Ariel.

Ariel slipped out of her nightgown and into her underclothes. She grabbed the bedpost as Carlotta laced up her corset. She slipped into the dress.

"Carlotta, stop being so secretive! Tell me what happened?" Ariel flopped down on the bed, placing her head on her palms.

"Well", Carlotta began. "Eric was going for a walk on the beach and stumbled upon another person! He was shipwrecked, just like you! He also seems to have no recollection of where he lived, or of any family he lived with. Can you beat that? Well Eric is Eric and he, of course, insisted that he came to stay in the castle until he found his family. Here, come meet him!"

Ariel saw no problem with this and raced down the stairs –oops!- she tripped and landed at the foot of the stairs. Max came bounding out at her and started licking her all over, as if he could heal any of her bruises.

"Get off her, you mutt!" Eric laughed, pushing Max off jokingly. "Sorry about that. But I think he likes you."

"And I love him!" Ariel stayed on the floor scratching Max behind the ears. She had never seen a dog before! They were so lovable!

"I understand how he could love someone as beautiful as you."

Ariel looked up.

Standing over her was Seamus.

"S-s-s-seamus" Ariel stuttered out.

"You two know each other?" Eric asked.

"We were shipwrecked together." Seamus lied. "We know a lot about each other."

Ariel stood up and moved closer to Eric, threading her hand through his.

Seamus smirked, fingering the vial in his pocket.


	4. Stopped

**Well thank you all for the reviews! I love you all! 3 3 3 **

**So I'll definitely try to slow down the story process, because that seems to be working well :D Well I'm thinking this chapter is going to be the juiciest one yet [ in my opinion] But I'll get started on the story now! :D**

_Gotta gotta be down_

_Because I want it all_

_It started out with a kiss_

_How did it end up like this?_

_It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss_

_Now they're goin' to bed_

_And my stomach is sick_

_But it's all in my head_

_But she's touching his chest now_

_-Mr. Brightside_

_The Killers_

Seamus woke up a little earlier than everyone else in the castle. He crept quietly down the steps and into the kitchen. It was almost seven, and Ariel was just the type of girl to be an early riser, not to mention the staff would surely be up soon. He rummaged through the icebox, until he found some orange juice in the back. He poured it into a glass, and then pulled out the little vial he got from Ursula. He looked at it, and decided to only put half in.

Just in case.

He stirred the potion into the orange juice. He grabbed a few hotcakes, well, now coldcakes, just so it wouldn't seem odd that he was just bringing her some juice.

It was time for the plan to work. He was sick and tired of just sitting around.

…

"Good morning"

Ariel's eyes flew open instantly. She did not recognize the voice in her room. Carlotta's "Good morning Darling!"s where cheerful and bright. Eric would wake her up sometimes, but his "Mornin'!"s were playful, and he would usually shake he shoulder a little. But this voice was deep, slimy, and cold. Ariel felt chilled. She sat up in bed, pulling her sheets up to her neck.

"You look beautiful." Seamus stood there with a glass of juice and some corncakes.

Ariel felt scared, and she didn't know why. Seamus did not seem like he would hurt her – he loved her too much, right?- but he just seemed so ill-intentioned standing there!

"I brought you some juice." Seamus stated, holding it out to her.

Ariel gulped, but took the juice. It smelled…off? She faked a smile, but placed it on the table next to her.

"I should go." Seamus left the room.

Ariel shook the feeling out of her head and rolled out of bed. She went into the closet and put on a lilac dress. She ran outside her room and slid down the banister, just looking to put the creepy morning behind her.

Seamus walked back into Ariel's room, and saw the glass of juice, just as full as it was when he gave it to her. His teeth clenched together. He picked up the glass and threw it out the open window.

Next time, he wouldn't fail.

…

"Mornin'!" Eric smiled as Ariel came to the breakfast.

"Morning Eric, but can I ask you something?" Ariel said, tilting her head.

"Anything!" Eric said.

"Did you ask Seamus to bring me breakfast?"

"What, no!"

"Well I was confused, because he brought me juice, and he seemed so…odd about it. I don't know…" Ariel dipped her head a little bit, and poked her toast with a dinglehopper.

"I'm sure you're just being paranoid." Eric whispered. "He doesn't seem like he's that bad, probably just a little scared from being shipwrecked and all. You processed it pretty well though."

Just then, Eric sat up straight. Seamus pulled out the seat next to Ariel and sat down.

"Am I interrupting something?" Seamus asked, smirking.

"No, no." Eric insisted. "But Ariel, I was wondering if you wanted to come with me today. See my kingdom?"

"I'd love too!" Ariel smiled, leaning her face on her hands.

"Yes, that just sounds wonderful." Seamus smirked. "I simply can't wait."

"Oh…you're coming too?" Eric tried to be polite, but he really wanted to be alone with Ariel.

"Naturally, I wouldn't want you two to be stuck together."

…

Dinner was quiet. It had been considerably less loud since Ariel left, but tonight was the worst. Everyone poked at their seaweed soufflé, not eating or talking. Then Alana began to cry.

"Alana! What's wrong, honey?" Artista asked, rubbing her shoulder.

"It's Ariel! Daddy, why aren't we looking for her? You have some of the guards out, yes, but they don't know her like we do! Why can't we help?" Alana said, wiping her eyes.

"You girls know I can't!" Triton tried to reason. "I can't even stand the chance of one of you going missing! We don't know what happened to Ariel, she could have been kidnapped or k-k-kil…the point is we don't know what could have happened to her, and if there's someone out there who wants to hurt my daughters-"

"Daddy, Alana is right!" Aquata said, banging her hands on the table. "We don't do anyone any good by sitting in the Palace day after day! Whoever took Ariel took her with complete protection by the guards. I think if someone wanted another one of us, we'd be kidnapped by now!"

"Aquata, don't say such things!" Triton roared. "I will have security doubled, no, tripled so no one will touch you!" He turned to one of the nearby guards. "Is that clear? By midnight tonight, there will be triple the security than there is currently!"

"But daddy!" Attina gasped. "Do you know how many guards you are taking away from the hunt for Ariel?"

"Attina, I can't put all my guards out for a chance, when I still have all of you to protect! I want Ariel back more than all of you, but I JUST CAN'T LOSE YOU GIRLS!" Triton bellowed.

"No! Daddy, you can't just let Ariel go so easily! It's only been a few days; they have to keep looking for her!" Andrina tried to reason.

"I will here no more of this! Go to your room, all of you! Guards! Stand watch at the door! I will be the only one let in or out!"

The guards nodded as the girls sulked back to their room. The guards let them in the rooms, and then stood outside, swords crossed over the door.

"We have to get her." Attina wheeled around as soon as the door closed, hands on hips.

"Can we really?" Alana smiled and clasped her hands together.

"Alana, I don't think you grasp how serious this is!" Artista said, grabbing Alana's hands. "There might be someone after us, after you, after daddy, the kingdom, we don't know! We have to find Ariel, she's our baby sister! But we have to be very, very careful.

…

The sun was setting and it was getting dark. Ariel yawned and leaned her head on Eric's shoulder. Eric smiled and put his arm around Ariel's shoulder. Seamus tried to slip his hand through Ariel's.

"What are you doing?" Ariel asked, appalled, pulling her hand away from Seamus.

"Ariel, you know how I feel about you. I believe I deserve a chance to try to win your heart." He cupped her chin but Ariel looked down.

"Seamus, stop! I-I'm done." Ariel bit her lip, hoping Seamus would drop the idea. Eric was still sitting next to her, and she couldn't have him know about everything that happened with Seamus!

"Ariel, just listen to me." Seamus began.

"Hey, just stop." Eric said, looking Seamus straight in the eyes. "You're bothering her. Lay off."

The three were silent for the rest of the ride home.

…

Ariel was sitting on her bed, drawing pictures of fish. There was a knock on her door.

"Come in!" Ariel said.

"Ariel, I need to talk to you." Seamus closed the door behind her. "I told you that I love you, my beauty. You're uncomfortable, I understand. Love is new to you."

"Seamus, stop."

"Shush." Seamus pressed a hand over her mouth. Ariel's heart was beating faster than normal. "I'd like to take you out tomorrow. Don't worry, I can romance you! I'll take you wherever you want."

"Seamus, stop!" Ariel rolled off the bed. "I don't love you! I love Eric!"

Seamus was quiet. "He'll never love you. You aren't even a real human. You ran away, you were half fish! You're just a freak."

Seamus turned on his heels as soon as he saw tears spring to Ariel's eyes.

Fine. He had to tear them apart. It will be done.

…

"Grim! Look at this!"

"What is it Eric?" Grimsby asked, smiling. Eric finally was smiling! Grimsby owed a lot to the little redhead upstairs. Maybe he would be proposing soon…

"We went to town today, and I finally found something for her." Eric pulled out a little blue box with a diamond ring. The diamond was small, for Ariel was not the type of girl to want a big flashy ring. It was shaped like a heart and there were ocean-blue sapphires around it.

"Eric, does this mean you're going to get married?" Grimsby smiled.

"If she says yes." Eric smiled.

Grimsby clapped Eric on the shoulder, "I'm so happy for you Eric! I'm sure she'll say yes!"

"I hope you're right. I'm going to propose tonight."

"Oh no you won't." Seamus shoved his hands in his pockets. He had overheard everything.

The plan could not wait any longer.

…

"We should go back. We've been gone all day! Daddy's probably noticed, oh he's gonna kill us!" Aquata moaned.

"This was such a waste of our time!" Andrina cried. "We've spent the whole day unguarded, and we're no closer to finding Ariel!"

The six girls sat down on a rock. They fanned their faces and stretched their arms.

"Let's face it. We've just screwed up!" Artista sighed blowing her bangs out of her eyes.

"We can help you find your sister."

Two blue eels slithered out from underneath a rock. They each had one yellow eye and one white.

"What do you mean? Who are you?" Attina pushed herself in front of the girls.

"We are watchers of the kingdom." One of the eels said. "We cannot save your sister ourselves, but we can lead you to her."

"Let's go!" Alana yelled, swimming forward.

"Alana, how are you so sure?" Artista asked.

"We may be wrong, but what if we're not? Ariel is not worth risking! Eels, can you take us to Ariel?" Alana asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"In only fifteen minutes, my dear." The other eel answered.

The sisters followed the eels forth, placing their complete trust in them. The eels placed their eyes together, and gave Ursula a warning. Ursula smiled and began to quickly throw things into her basin, all the while watching the picture of the girls she would be leading into her trap.

Finally, Aunt Ursula was going to meet her nieces.

…

"There!" Ariel held up a picture of Flounder and Sebastian she had drawn, the first picture of the night she was truly proud of. She signed her name and decided to give it to Eric. She stood up and brushed her hair. Once she was satisfied with her appearance, she turned around to walk out.

"I just heard Eric." Seamus stood in her doorway, fuming mad.

"Seamus, please go!"

"Ariel, you're being too stubborn for your own good! I heard Eric talking; he says you're imposing on his hospitality. He wants you gone already. I'll leave too, we'll go together."

"No, no I don't believe you!" Ariel touched a hand to her heart. "Eric loves me, I know he does, he wouldn't say that!"

"Well you would be wrong." Seamus said, his voice icy. "'Just trust me Ariel, I'm better for you than he is."

"No! I wo-" Ariel began to yell, but Seamus grabbed her and forced the vial to her mouth. He threw the bottle onto the floor and clamped both hands over her mouth. Ariel struggled, but as soon as the swallowed potion took effect, her demeanor shifted completely.

…

Eric was nervous, but understandably so. He had known Ariel for only days, but he just felt so much better around her! No suitor had ever just captured him the way she did. And he had to know she'd be with him forever. He had to marry her.

He had to.

He had rehearsed a thousand speeches in his head, but as soon as he started to say them, they sounded cheesy and stupid. He'd just have to wing it.

He took a deep breath and did some push – ups. He felt a little better, and decided to go looking for Ariel. He had to remember: breathe in, out. In, out. Hopefully he wouldn't pass out when he saw her.

"Eric! ERIC!" Eric heard Ariel yelling for him. She sounded happy.

He smiled and called back, "What is it? Where are you?"

Oh Eric! I have wonderful news!" Eric smiled watching Ariel run into the room.

"What happened?"

"I'm getting married!" Ariel spun and smiled, placing her arms around Seamus. "Isn't it great, he just proposed!" Seamus kissed Ariel's neck.

Eric's heart stopped.


	5. What You Don't Know

**I'm back, my loves! You know, being an author gives me a real feeling of power. I'm sitting faceless behind this computer, and only I choose when to update the story! Mwah hah aha! But don't worry, I probably won't go power-crazy. I'll update quickly, as I have previously. Oh look, it's raining. GAH! THERE'S AN ANT ON MY SCREEN! The fricken rain has driven the ants to my abode! HATE THEM! Ah well, you don't want to hear this story, you want more Eric 'n' Ariel! To the [actual] story!**

_He's so caught up_

_He won't call her_

_He shows no love_

_So she decides_

_I changed my mind_

_I don't love you_

_I don't love you no more_

_Don't waste my time_

_-I Changed My Mind_

_Keyshia Cole and Kanye West_

"We're going to Ursula's lair?" Aquata asked, her breath catching in her throat.

"Ursula has great power. She can show you all you need to know." The eels hissed simultaneously.

The sisters had heard many stories of Ursula. Their father had told then that she was their Aunt, who tried to throw him off the thrown at a young age. When he overpowered her, she became jealous with rage and dedicated her miserable life to getting revenge on her only brother, and one of the last members of her family.

Regardless, the sisters followed the eels. They saw the big skeleton lying on the ocean floor. They had reached Ursula's lair. The sisters argued over who would go in first, but after some assurance from the eels, they all joined hands and swam into together. There was a creepy tunnel, with little grey blobs floating back and forth on the floor. They turned the corner, getting just a peek at how the Sea Witch lived, and then –snatch!- a orange bubble encircled the sisters and then plastered them to the wall.

"Help! HELP US!" they screamed, but no one heard them.

The eels snickered and swam off. Ten minutes passed, then 45, then and hour. Finally, Ursula swam out of her back room, and sat in front of the girls.

"What do you want with us?" Alana screamed between tears.

"Here's what we're going to do. You-" Ursula reached a chubby purple arm into the bubble and pulled out the weeping Artista. "You, my darling, are going to put this vial on the beach in front of a big castle. You will talk to no one, do nothing else, and then come back here?"

"What if I go get the guards?" Artista smirked and crossed her arms.

"For every guard you bring back here", Ursula said. "I will kill one of your sisters. And if you are not back by midnight, Daddykins will die."

The girls gasped, and Alana cried harder. Ursula smirked and slammed the vial into Artista's hand. "Now go. Every second counts." She laughed, her voice taunting.

Artista swam through a hole in the roof of the lair and up to the shore. She alligator crawled up to the shallowest water and dug the bottle into the sand.

"Hello there!"

Artista looked up through her blond bangs and into the eyes of a very beautiful human.

"Hi", she smiled, her natural flirt kicking in. "I'm Artista."

The human sat down in front of her. "You know, you're very beautiful." His eyes flickered down towards the bottle. "Is this for me?" he snickered and stuck it in his pocket, strolling back to the castle and past a large white docked boat.

…

Seamus snickered. Artista didn't even recognize him! It was an opportunity to great to pass up. It even seemed like she liked him. God, he felt great.

"Why es therie another giol here?" a high voice screamed out, practically drenched in a heavy French accent. "I wes azured zat I woud be ze only princess here!"

Seamus peered from behind the banister and saw a true human princess standing there. She had dark black hair and big blue eyes. Her waist was tiny, but she was relatively tall, she was better looking than Ariel! And from just the bit of the screaming match Seamus had witnessed, he could tell she was feistier as well. Seamus wanted her. And what Seamus wanted, Seamus got.

"Listen I'm sorry!" Eric said, trying to calm the girl down. "I didn't even know you were coming. I sent a letter three weeks ago asking you to not come."

"We left three weeks ago!" the Princess sniffed. Her voice lost some of the accent when she calmed down.

"I'm very sorry. You're welcome to stay here until you can get a ship." Eric said.

"Good." The princess sniffed, turned on her heel and strutted off.

Seamus followed her, and the two began to talk. They talked for_ hours_, and about _everything_! She seemed really fabulous, and Seamus now had his mind set on marrying her. The sailor boy could have Ariel, like he cared anymore! _He_ had a true human princess, not some half-human half-mermaid freak.

As the sun was setting, Seamus strolled down the beach. He stuck his hands in his pockets. "Ouch!" he pulled the glass bottle out of his pocket, he had forgotten it was there! Attached was a note:

_Seamus-_

_Drink this._

_Ursula_

Seamus raised an eyebrow, but put the bottle to his lips and drank. He looked around him, looked at his arms, felt his face. Nothing had changed. The tide washed up and touched his toes, instantly his legs felt like they were on fire. "What the-" Seamus was dragged into the water. As he looked down he noticed that his tail was back. He felt like he was being dragged lower and lower into the ocean, and though he fought, he ended up in Ursula's lair.

"Well!" Ursula said, spinning in her chair. "I had to bring you back! How are things going, love?"

Seamus sat in a chair. "I should probably be mad, but I'm not surprised. What do you want?"

"I saw things go a bit…differently than I thought with Ariel! Explain." Ursula said, her eyebrows scrunched together.

"Well," Seamus sighed. "Can you take the spell off her? I found someone else, and I don't want Ariel anymore. Eric can have her…"

"I told you only true love can break the spell! She's stuck like that! Stupid boy, you can't just swing your affections so!" Ursula hissed.

"But I can't have her following me around like that! No, there has to be another way!" Seamus's eyes went large, he began to panic. "You have to help me out here!"

"Well", Ursula already had a plan the second she saw Seamus with the princess in her crystal ball. She still seemed to be pondering everything over. She enjoyed making the boy sweat. "I guess I have a solution that would suit both of us."

She launched herself up from her seat, and opened a cabinet on the wall. She sat down in front of Seamus. "Here's what you will do. Now I knew you would be coming, and have this potion already made." She pulled out an ornate knife, with gemstones in the handle. She dipped it into the basin and pulled it out. It shone bright yellow, and then faded back to its normal color. "Now you will follow these instructions step by step, or terrible things will happen to you. You will bring the Little Mermaid to the shore. She'll have no problem following you. Then before the sun sets, you will plunge this dagger through her heart and kill her. Her blood must run into the ocean, for I will capture her soul. Her body will crumble into sand in minutes, and you can run off with your princess or whatever you wish. Do you understand me?"

"Yes." Seamus looked into Ursula's eyes and nodded.

"Now listen to me for this is important." Ursula continued. "You must do everything I've told you, but you only have until the sun sets on the third day. After that the potion will wear off, and her body will not crumble. You will be caught, tried, and hung for murder. I imagine Prince Eric would not be so forgiving. Hah! Now you may notice it's getting harder for you to breathe down here. Your merman potion is wearing off. I suggest you take the knife and swim."

Seamus swam to the surface, and broke the surface as his fins changed. He stood up on the beach and began walking back to the castle. Just yesterday, he thought he loved Ariel. Ah well, love came and went. He just had to capture it again.

And no one would get in his way.


	6. The First Day

**You know, it's so weird. I really truly hate Seamus. Which I find odd, because I made him this way [ but hey, it's essential to the story. He sort of has to be a playboy], and he's not real. Is that normal? Should you really hate someone that's not real? Ugh, I need some chocolate…that usually fixes things!**

_I'll fight for you_

_I'll give you all I've got to give_

_I'll fight for you_

_Whoa baby as long as we should live_

_I'll search for Heaven each day_

_And together we'll find a way_

_And I'll fight for you darlin'_

_I'll fight for you baby yeah, yeah_

'_cause I've waited too long for love_

_-I'll Fight For You_

_Foreigner _

It was breakfast the next morning and King Triton ate it alone. He was not happy about it, for he did not like eating in silence, but he understood that his daughters were angry. He may have yelled more than he should, but they're just children! He simply can't let his babies be taken by some evil merman, his duty as a father was to protect them! After the girls were about half an hour late to breakfast, he swam to their room. The guards said they had not left. Triton assumed they were sleeping. He ate the algae muffins in silence, at the head of the table.

By lunch, he was worried. The girls rarely slept in this late, and they usually only did after a ball! He decided that they could be sulking, but this seemed to be stretching it. He swam to their door and knocked, with no answer he commanded the guards to let him in. He entered the room, ready to _maybe _apologize, when his heart caught in his throat.

The room was empty.

"Girls? GIRLS?" King Triton yelled, swimming around the room. He looked out the windows, in the bathroom, he checked the closet, every hiding place. He swam back out of the room. "GUARDS! MY DAUGHTERS ARE GONE! THEY'VE BEEN TAKEN! FIND THEM! **FIND THEM! **OR I'LL HAVE YOUR HEADS!" his voice boomed, sending the guards into action. He sunk down onto the ground, and put his face in his hands. "What have I done…what have I done…"

…

Eric did not like Seamus. He had never been surer of anything in his life. Eric would watch him prance around the castle like the pompous, arrogant, man he was. He had stolen Ariel from him, but he did not love her! Eric saw that his affections were settled on the princess in his castle.

Her name was Princess Marie Elitiqué III. She was from Paris, France. She had an impressive lineage of some of the most important people in French history, and boy was she proud of it. She had taken dozens of lessons for sewing, singing, dancing, and poise, but she was still as dumb as a box of rocks.

"_Yes but unfortunately I had to fire him. He was a kind man, but a terrible leader." Eric sighed, sitting at the head of the dinner table. He hated discussing politics, especially at meals, but Seamus had asked._

"_Vat did he do?" Marie cocked her head._

"_He was taking bribes to let people break laws." Eric replied._

"_Vat is a bribe?"_

"_It's when you secretly take money to let someone do something wrong."_

"_And vhy is zat bad?" _

_Eric's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"_

"_No, after all e'erybody wins! You need not be zo stupid, young prince! Haw! I'm not even Queen, and I've had many of my people give me money, for no apparent reason!"_

But still, Seamus went everywhere with her. They walked around the palace, took walks on the beach, and were never more than ten feet away from each other. And still, Ariel was in love with him. He's all she talked about, it seemed like she couldn't say anything else! Eric just wanted to talk to her. Seamus just couldn't be good for her.

…

Ariel felt like she was in a prison. Unfortunately, she couldn't climb out a window or bust open a lock to get out of this one. No, she was under a spell, and there was nothing she could do about it. She loved Eric, and she hated how everything she said hurt him! If she would try to say 'Eric, I love you!' it would come out as 'You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Seamus.'

And that wasn't all. Every move she wanted to make, she couldn't. If she tried to hold Eric's hand, she would end up hugging Seamus. And every time she saw Eric, there was only hurt in his eyes! She didn't want him to hurt at all, but especially not when she was causing it!

But the potion hurt her as well because of that! Her brain was operating against her will, but her heart still felt the same. She had tried to avoid Eric for a bit, hoping she wouldn't hurt him by saying anything, but Eric saw it as avoiding him because she didn't like him anymore.

Why was Seamus even doing this to her anymore! He was running around with the floozy princess, and let him! He could take Princess McBlahblah and leave her alone! But the spell was still there, and she still had to follow him, and act like she loved him, and hurt Eric in the process. She had tried to talk to Seamus a while back, ask him to remove the spell, but all that came out was 'I love you'. Bleck, she gagged just thinking about it.

Eventually, a thought came to Ariel. The only way she could not hurt Eric was to say nothing, do nothing. Ariel had to be silent. And she would be silent forever. For Eric.

…

Eric sat in his office. He was exhausted and emotionally drained. As a consequence, he read the same sentence over and over again. As a consequence, he read the same sentence over and over again. As a consequence, he read the same sentence over and over again. He just couldn't stop thinking about Ariel! He loved her, and he didn't want her hurt. But for some reason she loved Seamus, and every word she said seemed to be centered on him!

He tried talking to Grim about it, but he just didn't understand! Grim had never been married, never courted, and never been in love. He didn't know what it felt like to have someone rip your heart into pieces, and just having to sit there and pretend like everything is fine. Love hurt. It was times like this where he most wished his parents were alive. His father would've known what to do, and his mother would've made him feel better. But he had to go through this by himself.

He couldn't work like this! He jammed his hands in his pockets and went down the stairs. He leaned his arm on the huge window and looked out at the sea. Hoping it would make him feel better, he went for a walk on the beach. Hearing the door open, Max followed him outside.

Eric was walking when he saw Seamus and Marie. They were sitting on the beach, on a blanket. Eric didn't like it: Seamus was much too cozy with this girl. And he was engaged to Ariel! Eric made sure he would talk to Seamus tonight. Eric kicked off his boots and rolled up his pants, wading into the water. The ocean always made him feel better. A wave rolled in and crashed on the shore. It soaked Eric, but made Marie scream in a pitch so high, it could break glass. Eric turned around, and saw Seamus take her hand to comfort her. He then leaned in and kissed Marie.

No.

Eric was furious. Seamus had Ariel in love with him! He had the best girl anyone could ever have, and he was _cheating_ on her with some annoying princess! Livid, Eric stormed up to him.

"What the hell are you doing?" Eric demanded, looking Seamus in the eye. "For God's sake, you're engaged! You're cheating on Ariel!"

"Calm down. She doesn't have to know." Seamus leaned back and gave Eric a taunting look. "No matter what I do, she'll always crawl back to me."

Eric was flabbergasted, he didn't know anyone actually thought like that! For the moment, he turned on Marie "and _you knew_ he was engaged? And you're _fine_ with that?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Marie leaned on Seamus. "I know she means nothing. She's so _odd_. I was _assured_ I was the main woman in his life." Marie kissed Seamus again.

Seamus stood up. "Listen, Ariel is nothing. I know you love her, but she'll never love you, and no matter what I throw her into, she'll always come out loving **me**. She can't help it. It's like…it's like I've put her under a spell."

"How could you do this to her? You're a slimy, no-good, rat. She's the best, kindest, sweetest girl I've ever met and you're just content to treat her like crap! She's too nice to say otherwise, but you should never be able to treat her like this!" Eric yelled.

"Listen to me." Seamus began, his voice taunting and low. "She'll never love you, I doubt you're her type. So why don't we pretend this never happened, you turn around, walk back to your castle, and maybe I'll let you have her for a night. In fact-"

Unable to stand any more, Eric punched Seamus in the face. Seamus's nose began to gush blood, pouring down his shirt. Fuming, Eric gave Seamus one last look, and walked back to his castle, Max barking next to him.


	7. The Second Day

**STEFON! :D snl: best city correspondent ever! SNL! SNL! Anyway, sorry I took so long to update, was at lacrosse like the whole time XD life gets in the way of fanfiction…especially lax – I spend 6 hours doing that today! So until the season is over, the updates *might* not come as quickly. Urgle, I'm tired. CHOCOLATE! ok, to the story!**

_I don't know when_

_I don't know how_

_But I know something is starting right now_

_Watch and you'll see_

_Wish I could be_

_Part of your world_

_-Part of your world_

_Little Mermaid_

_[what else? XD] _

Ursula settled in front of the sisters, a smirk on her lips."Heh heh heh, well hello there darlings! How are you doing? Hah!" The sisters barely reacted, they were used to this type of torture by now. "Now I understand you came here to see where your sister, and I wouldn't let you leave without getting what you want!"

Ursula perched herself in front of the sisters and spun her hands, creating a crystal ball in front of them. "Your daddy was crumbling with the loss of your youngest -but look!- they she walks, on legs, on land. She's a human, dearies. But she came to me to get it! And as I said, you're daddy felt just awful with one daughter missing – what would happen with all 7 _dead_?" At this the sisters gasped and covered the mouths, eyes opening in shock. "Ariel will be dead in a matter of days, hours even. As soon as her blood touches the ocean, I will be able to take her soul. And because common blood runs through all your veins, I will be able to take your souls as well. And without your soul, you cannot live. Triton will fall, and I will be Queen of the Ocean once more!" With this Ursula laughed and swam off, leaving the sisters in their misery.

"You guys, what are we going to do?" Andrina said, looking up at her other worried sisters.

"What _can_ we do? Nothing!" Attina snapped. "We're going to die, and there's nothing we can do about it!" She tilted her head up, as if it would keep the tears in. She had to be strong for her sisters.

"We have to try something!" Alana insisted, pushing her hair back.

"No. Let's just talk. Use what time we have left" Attina settled down, stiff and rigid.

"At least Ariel's happy." Arista mumbled, dipping her head, allowing her bangs to fall into her face.

The sisters all looked at her, but sighed and looked away.

…

Eric marched inside, proud of what he did. The question is, can he tell Ariel what her fiancé was doing? It would tear her apart, but not as much as being second-best for the man she loved! (Eric cringed at this thought) But she deserved to make a decision about this. And maybe she would break off the engagement. It was worth a shot.

He headed up the stairs and walked to where Ariel's room was. He was puzzled by her seclusion. She had been up there for the entire morning, and had gone to bed right after dinner. Normally Ariel liked to go to the library and read, or walk on the beach, or do something that required a little more energy.

He knocked on the door, "Ariel? Are you in here?"

When there was no answer, he opened the door and walked in. Ariel was lying on her bed, drawing. She saw him, and her face broke out in a smile. She waved him over with enthusiasm and pointed to some drawings.

The first drawing was a mermaid, swimming with a yellow and blue fish. The mermaid had a green tail and bright red hair like Ariel. There was an arrow, then a picture of a human, standing by the castle. Ariel pointed to the picture and gestured to herself.

"You want to be a mermaid?" Eric asked, tilting his head. "Sorry hun, but that's impossible. There's no such thing as mermaids." He laughed. "But I wish there were some as well."

…

Seamus felt nothing for Ariel. He realized that now. Seamus loved Marie! He knew he could kill Ariel, he saw it as killing for Marie and their love. But what he didn't know is how to kill Ariel. He had to lure her out to the beach - that would be easy enough. He could take her out to a prison, and she would see it as a trip to the park.

But Eric was his obstacle. The body would take a few minutes to disappear, and he had to make sure that Eric would stay away long enough for him to dispose of Ariel and the weapon. Seamus couldn't be caught: it would ruin his reputation and hope of marriage to Marie! Not to mention, the boy didn't like to be more than a few yards away from Ariel at best!

Seamus had to try for a fast break. He ran up to Ariel's room and threw open the door.

"Ariel! We're going to the beach!" Seamus walked in.

Eric was sitting on her bed, they were talking. Was this even allowed to happen with the spell? Wasn't she supposed to repel him? It couldn't be failing! Who knows what could happen then? No! Ursula said it would last forever! No, no, no! He had the plan; he knew what he had to do.

But he couldn't get her away with Eric there. Seamus closed the door behind him and went down the steps. He expected Ariel to follow him, but he was unaware that she was using every ounce of willpower to not follow him.

…

"Ariel, I have to tell you something. It may be hard, but I need you to understand that I'm trying to help you. Okay?" Eric looked deep into Ariel's eyes. She nodded. "Seamus is cheating on you. The princess, Marie, is his mistress. But you don't deserve that. You're the most amazing girl I've ever met. I wish I could have someone as great as you."

Eric braced himself for a waterfall of tears. Eric braced himself for screaming, crying. Eric braced himself for a swirl of emotions to rival a tornado. Eric braced himself to help Ariel through the whole process. Eric braced himself for every feeling, emotion, every action that could possibly come with finding out you love has cheated on you.

None of it came.

Instead, Ariel looked at him with pity, saying nothing. As if she was sad about something that had happened to him. Eric was confused, to say the least. Ariel looked as if she was in pain, but she folded up the mermaid to human picture and put it in his hand, closing his hand around it. Then she looked as if she had been stabbed, her face so scrunched and screwed up she could've just dropped dead.

But she stood up, wrapped her arms around Eric, and hugged him. Eric put his arms around her and hugged her back. The pain first increased, and then seemed to melt off Ariel's face. She relaxed, and sighed.

She had broken through part of the spell.


	8. The Third Day

**Well, it seems this might be the last chapter…but I don't think sooooooo….originally, it was going to be, but I was thinking about it in math today, and I realized it would be a stupid ending, with a lot left unsaid and undone. So, lo and behold, the seemingly-ending-but-not-really-because-i-say-so-chapter. Love you guys! Review please! :D**

"Ariel I love you. And I might just die if you don't love me too." Eric smiled and grabbed Ariel's hands, bringing her closer to himself.

"Oh Eric," Ariel sighed. "I love you too!" Ariel face broke out in a smile. She had broken the spell! All by herself, no antidote, no spell, just pure love.

Eric's face lit up, he drew Ariel even closer to himself. "Then marry me Ariel! I don't want to live without you"

Ariel eyes bugged out and her face broke out in a smile. "Of course! Of course I will Eric! Oh, I'm so happy!"

Eric smiled and picked her up, spinning her around. The two embraced and Eric kissed her. "You can have whatever you want for a wedding! Nothing is too much or too little. I'll give you whatever makes you happy." Eric smiled down at her.

"Oh Eric, I don't need things to make me happy." Ariel smiled, slipping her hand through is and pulling him out of the room and down the stairs. "It's not important when I get married, or with what, but with who. And that person is you."

With that Eric smiled, but pulled her off the last few steps and into his arms. He spun her around and Ariel laughed and

Woke up.

No, no! She thought that she had finally broken the spell, finally headed to her own happily ever after.

But no. She pulled her knees to her chest and rested her arms and head on them. It was just a stupid dream, a tease. A few stray tears fell from her eyes and polka dotted the light blue sheets. Would she ever get a happily ever after? At this point it seemed unlikely.

The third day had just begun.

…

"You guys, we can't just sit here." Alana referred to everyone, but looked Attina straight in the eye. How could the strongest of the sisters fall with so little fight? "If we're going to die, we might as well die trying, right?"

The girls all eventually nodded in agreement.

"It's just like a bubble, right?" Arista asked, tilting her head and poking the goo. "Well, all bubbles pop, so if we all push really hard, it could pop! Right?" Arista bit her lip and cocked her head, hoping the idea was a good one.

"You're a genius Arista!" Andrina shouted, wrapping her arms around her sister. "We'll get out of here in no time!"

The sisters first tried to pop the bubble, then were pushing their hands up against it. They leaned against it with their shoulders and pushed. They each pounded their fists and clawed at it. But the bubble just wouldn't pop!

"We're never going to get out of here." Attina sat back down. "I'm so, so sorry! I'm the oldest, I should have protected you, you're just my baby sisters! But no I've failed you. I'm sorry."

"Oh Attina!" the sisters sunk back down and hugged her. "Don't say that! We love you, and you've protected us perfectly. Don't ever think you did anything wrong – it's all our faults, really!"

Alana paused for a moment. "Hey Attina, how would you like to be the one who saves us?"

Attina replied, "Alana, I just want us to be saved! I don't care who does it."

"Well," Alana smirked, tilting her head. "How do you feel about, er, letting your hair down?"

…

Ursula sat in her bedchamber, staring at her reflection. She tried to pull back her skin, make the lines and creases disappear. It didn't work. Being evil was so much more strenuous on the body than being good, and Ursula was getting older, to say the least.

She needed souls! Every mermaid soul restored her youth, and it had been so long since she had captured a young soul, so long since her vigor and youth had been restored to her. But as soon as Ariel's blood hit the ocean, Ursula would have seven souls, restoring her youth for years, decades even!

And as soon as Triton fell, due to the loss of his daughters, of course, all of Atlantic would be subject to keeping their Queen young. If one or two must sacrifice their lives every once in a while, so be it! Ursula could live with that.

Ursula whipped her head around at looked at the clock. She knew time was running out for her, by the end of the day she herself could become naught more than a pile of ash! It had been years, _years,_ since a mermaid had come for her, looking for help! Why Ariel was like a blessing, or at least she will be when she's dead. Ursula needed the souls of the princesses.

The worst part was there was nothing she could do about it. She had no choice but to place all her faith in a bumbling merman! Seamus better pull through for her! Every minute seemed to waver between complete and utter faith in Seamus and the need to turn herself into a human and stab the little redhead herself! She looked at the clock, and watched the minutes ticked away. She looked back at the mirror and saw more wrinkles and the loss of more color in her hair and skin. That was the one problem with relying on souls for life: without them, months ticked away in minutes.

Ursula hated Triton for taking everything away from her. First Triton removed her youngest (and most normal) sister from her by marrying her, and then Triton banished Ursula after Athena went and got herself killed. Triton and Ursula had always hated each other, but Triton just used his wife's death as an excuse to be rid of the competition for the throne.

Ursula picked up a vase and threw it across the room. It wasn't fair! This just had to work! A stupid merman _could not_ undo everything she had worked so hard for! Everything she had planned, so perfectly executed. She was grasping and strings, but she could not, would not come undone.

Or else.

…

Seamus had forgotten today was the third day. He was too occupied with Marie. The girl decided she would like to go into town, and the two strolled for hours. Marie went shopping and dragged Seamus into countless jewelry stores and clothing boutiques. Seamus, naturally, bought Marie everything she wanted, and carried it for her – with minimal complaint.

"Darling we should probably head back to the castle!" Seamus laughed, his face hidden behind the boxes and bags. "I don't think I can carry any more packages!"

Marie glared at him. "Fine. One more store. I want a necklace. A green one, this time." She sniffed and marched into the store, pulling the door the wrong way.

Seamus did buy her a large green necklace, as well as a few others, but they eventually headed home. They then sat in the library for fifteen minutes: Seamus was trying to interest Marie in a book. He failed. Marie announced that she had a headache and went up to her room to lay down.

That's when Seamus looked out the window.

His heart practically stopped. The sun was beginning to set – it would be dark in 15? 20? minutes and the plan would have failed. He walked into the kitchen and grabbed a knife. Seamus looked back and forth then tucked it into his pocket. He left the kitchen and looked around. Good, no one saw him.

He ran back and forth looking for Ariel. Seamus saw her ascending the stairs to her room. She looked like she was exhausted and in pain. Ah well, she'd feel nothing in just a little bit. Seamus ran to the stairs, pleased Eric was nowhere near her.

"Ariel! We're going to the beach!" Seamus commanded, dragging her.

Ariel was unable to resist and followed him silently. Her feet dragged slowly, trying to resist, but her heart quickly hammered with dread.

…

Eric was looking for Ariel. He had spent almost all night looking at the picture. At first he just brushed it off as nothing more than a drawing, but it just seemed so important to her! She hadn't been talking, and that just confused him. He had so many questions, had he had to find Ariel.

He knew they would all be answered.

Eric left his room and walked to the top of the stairs. He looked down and saw Seamus dragging Ariel outside. What was he doing with her? Eric didn't trust Seamus for one minute. He folded the picture and tucked it in his pocket. He crept down the stairs silently, for he didn't know if Seamus wanted to be found. He hid by a large window. He looked out onto the beach and into the setting sun. He opened the door and slipped out. He walked down the beach, but he felt so weird, like he was invading someone's privacy! He had never actually followed anyone before, and he wasn't sure if he should be doing this.

But no, he was protecting Ariel. Seamus had already cheated on her, who knew what else he would do?

Eric stopped behind a large rock and crouched. He watched Seamus. He began to yell at Ariel! Ariel was looking scared, her eyes were cloudy and glazed and her mouth formed a perfect "o". Then Eric looked at Seamus.

He was holding a knife behind his back.

No, no he couldn't…he was not going to hurt Ariel! No, Eric couldn't even take the chance that she might get hurt. Unnoticed, Eric stood up and started walking towards them.

…

Ariel stood there and looked into Seamus's eyes. But she saw nothing. She was zoning out, not even hearing the threats and insults he whispered. But she tilted her head and saw…Eric? He was walking towards her, no he was going faster than that. He was –what's that word again? Oh yeah,- running. Confused, she looked behind her, but saw nothing. Then she looked out into the ocean and all she saw was the sun, minutes away from setting.

"And that, my little mermaid, is why you must die."

Ariel's head snapped around. What did he just say? She looked at Seamus, but he grabbed her wrist: his grip was like a vice. Ariel tried to tug, but she couldn't escape. Seamus smirked and kicked Ariel in the shin. Wincing with pain, Ariel bit her lip and bent over. Seamus took this opportunity to cut the top of Ariel's wrist. Blood flew like a river and Ariel screamed, falling down onto the sand, near the ocean.

Seamus raised the knife.

…

"Come ON!" Andrina screamed. "We have to try one more time!"

The sisters had tried everything. They would push on the bubble, scratch at it, poke at it with their nails, anything they could do to try to escape. They had even used Attina's hair crown to try and poke a hole.

The sea was darkening, and the sisters couldn't be trapped for another day!

"We have to work together on this!" Alana said.

The sisters nodded and plastered themselves up against the wall. They rammed their shoulders into the bubble and saw it shake. Smiling the sisters wound up and hit it again.

"Attina, please! Put your heart into it! We can't do this without you." Arista begged.

"There's no hope. Just sit back down." Attina moped, leaning her head against the wall.

"Attina, listen to me. We have to try to escape. Not just for ourselves, but to heal Daddy! Not just for ourselves, but to help Ariel! What if we could bring her back home? You don't want your baby sister to walk around on land with savages!" Alana looked into her sisters eyes.

Attina stood up and smiled. She pressed her hands on the wall,

"Tell me when to push."

…

Ariel looked into Seamus's eyes. No, this wasn't happening! How could he do this to her? She tried to stand up, but Seamus kicked her in the stomach.

_Please…don't…_ Ariel tried to mumble. Instead, she mumbled "Love…you…"

Seamus smirked and said, "don't worry dear, I'll release you from this spell."

Seamus raised the knife again, but Eric tackled him. Seamus dropped the knife by the tide, and threw Eric off him, standing up. Eric rolled, but hopped back up to his feet.

"You don't get to hurt her!" Eric yelled. "Not now, not ever again!"

Seamus was too mad for words. He was running out of time, and he did not need someone in his way. He glared at Eric for a moment, and then punched him in the stomach. Eric bit his lip, but punched Seamus again. Seamus stood up and punched Eric in the head with all his might.

Eric crumpled to the ground.

Ariel crawled over to where the knife was, trying to remain unseen. She stood up with the knife and yelled, "SEAMUS!" smirking, she whipped the knife into the ocean.

Seamus glared at her, the setting sun reflecting in his eyes. He walked very slowly towards Ariel, fists clenched.

"What did you just do?" he hissed, his voice slow and low and deadly.

Ariel's eyes bugged out as Seamus approached her. Seamus grabbed her by her dress straps and pulled her closer. "You have no idea how many different levels of pain I can cause you. And I intend to give you a taste of each one. In fact-"

Eric pushed Seamus, and Ariel came tumbling down with him. Ariel landed on the sandy beach, but Seamus became drenched in the ocean.

Seamus stood up "It doesn't matter what you do to me! She'll never love you!"

"Oh Ariel!" Eric ran to her, as she sat up on the beach. He was just so happy that she was okay! He thought Seamus was going to seriously hurt her. Possibly even kill her. He looked into her big blue eyes.

He kissed her.

The cloudiness left her eyes. She seemed to snap out of a trance even. All the exhaust on her face seemed to disappear and she seemed younger. She shook her head and smiled. "Eric!" she said, smiling even bigger. True love had finally broken the spell. Eric loved Ariel with all his heart, and had been able to prove that to her.

The sun set.

"I'm going to-" Seamus began to threaten, but a wave crashed on top of him. The water began to boil around him. "What? No!" Seamus dissolved into Sea Foam, and was washed out into the ocean.

…

"NOW!" The sisters yelled, and they rammed against the wall of the bubble. Attina pushed hardest of them all.

It popped and the sisters left the cave, swimming as fast as their fins could carry them.

Ursula didn't notice.

A few rooms over, a pile of ash sat where Ursula used to be. Seamus was too late, Ursula was no more. Her magic, potions, and power would now be left, for anyone and everyone to use if they had to guts to come find them. Would anyone actually come?

Time would tell.

…

Ariel stood up, but the spell left her body. Her eyes lost their cloudiness, and she could now speak with freedom.

"Eric!"

"Ariel!" Eric ran to her and picked her up, holding her closer.

"Oh Eric, I'm so sorry! He put me under a spell, I couldn't help what I was doing. I never wanted to hurt you! Oh Eric!" she hugged him back.

"Ariel! It doesn't matter! I'm just so happy you're okay!" Eric smiled.

The two teens looked into each other's eyes, just savoring the moment.

Eric cleared his throat. "You're bleeding." He held her wrist. "We should get you inside.

Ariel smiled and looked at him. For a moment, everything was perfect.

**Sorry guys, but NOT THE ENDING! NOT THE ENDING! XD Review! VV the button is down there VV click it! Review! Please!**


	9. Forever

**Sorry update took so long! LAX! Season almost over :[**

Eric was on a mission. Ariel had been resting for two days now, per doctor's orders. The cut on her hand was sewn up and bandaged, and was healing quickly. One of the bones in her ribcage was broken, and Ariel had showed him the odd protrusion it gave her. She would poke at it, and wince. She was covered in bruises from head to toe. But after the first day, she was sick of resting. She kept trying to get up and sneak out. She wanted to see Eric! But he visited her a lot, for he had a mild concussion which did not require rest.

"How ya doin'" Eric smiled, walking into Ariel's room. It was the third day. Ariel was strangely…quiet, distant.

"Fine." She mumbled. "Eric, can I tell you something?"

Eric's stomach dropped. What was this big of a deal to her? "Anything." He sat down next to her on her bed.

Ariel hugged her knees to her chest. "Do you love me?"

Eric didn't hesitate, "Oh course I love you!"

Ariel smiled a little, but it melted off her face "Would you love me even if I wasn't from… here?

"Of course! What country you lived in doesn't matter!" Eric smiled, taking her hand. Was that all?

"I don't live in a country." Ariel mumbled.

"What?" Eric leaned in.

"I lived in the ocean, Eric. I was a mermaid."

Eric paused for a second. It was a lot to take in! But that didn't matter to him, in fact, it was fantastic. "That's wonderful!" Ariel's head snapped up. "I love the ocean more than life itself, and now the girl I love is from there!"

Ariel smiled and laughed, all nervousness leaving her body. She threw her arms around Eric and he hugged her back.

Eric smiled, "I have to go_, and I'll be back_ before dinner! **Rest!**" he smiled and turned around the corner.

Eric walked into his bedroom, and opened his dresser. All the money in it was gone.

Seamus.

Eric cursed him Seamus out, mumbling swears under his breath. Eric opened a safe behind the closet and took out some money, shoving it into his pocket.

He had a very important purchase to make.

Eric took a horse out of the barn – his favorite, a thoroughbred named Penny. He rode her all the way into town. Dismounting, he walked quickly through the streets, trying to not be noticed. He entered the jewelers.

" Andre?" Eric asked loudly, pushing open the door.

"What can I do for ye, m'boy? How ye doin' kid?" Andre leaned on the counter.

Eric smiled. "I need a ring."

"You getting' married? To who? Grimsby? You don't get out much, boy." Andre laughed, his belling moving up and down.

Eric smiled, "To a _girl_, Andre. Grimsby's not my type. Her name is Ariel."

"Well good for you, son!" Andre smiled and started bringing out rings.

Eric looked at the selection, but it didn't take long to find the perfect ring. There was a perfectly shaped diamond set in the middle, with little waves of sapphires flowing out from it.

Eric smiled and paid the jeweler, slipping the ring into his pocket.

…

"We've hidden it from him long enough! We have to tell daddy!" Andrina insisted, leaning forward on her shell bed.

The girls had returned home three days ago, to the instant celebration of the kingdom. There were feasts and balls and congratulations. People seemed to relax, despite the fact that Ariel was still missing. The sisters had been welcomed by King Triton, with many apologies for yelling and the lack of protection. The sisters apologized for swimming off.

"But she just seemed so _happy_…did you see her dancing? Why would we take that away from her?" Arista asked.

"She did always love the human world." Alana added.

"Girls, Andrina is right! What if something went wrong? Ariel's never been a human before! We have to save her!"

The sisters all eventually agreed and swam off yelling "Daddy! Where are you?"

"Girls? GIRLS? I'm right here!" Triton swam up to them. "What's wrong?"

"We know where Ariel is!" Arista blurted out.

"What? Where?" Triton demanded, his voice a mixture of fear, anger, and happiness.

"On land!" Alana added. "She's with a boy."

Triton's face turned red. "Humans? HUMANS? MY DAUGHTER HAS BEEN TAKEN BY HUMANS? AS POSEIDON AS MY WITNESS, I WILL KILL WHOEVER HAS MY DAUGHTER!"

Furious, Triton swam to the surface, the sisters trying to follow.

…

"Hey Ariel?" Eric came in her room again.

Ariel put down the drawing she was working on. "Eric!"

"Do you want to come out to be beach? I have to…ask you something. It'd also be good for you to start walking again." Eric smiled.

Ariel leapt out of bed and fell on her butt – she had been out of practice for two days! But she picked herself up and ran to Eric. The two walked down the stairs and out to the beach, Eric taking her hand.

After a few minutes, Eric couldn't stand to wait. He stopped Ariel, and stuck his hand in his pocket.

Eric cleared his throat. He suddenly felt so nervous! He had been so sure this morning, now he was just a mess! "Ariel, will you-"

"ARIEL!" Triton roared, his eye scrunched together. "What ARE you doing?"

Ariel whirled around. "Daddy!"

"Daddy?" Eric questioned.

"Ariel, you are coming home."

"NO!" Ariel responded, like an insolent child.

"Ariel, do not disobey me! You are coming HOME!"

"I won't go! Daddy, please! I love it here!"

"You will come home…"Triton said slowly, "Or I will kill him." Eric jumped for a moment, the trident was aimed right at him.

"No, Daddy! Please!"

"Ariel, you know I'll do it!"

"Daddy!"

The trident began to glow. Eric and Ariel stood for a moment, frozen in shock at what was happening!

"OK! I'll-I'll go." Ariel hung her head, red bangs dipping over her eyes.

The Trident stopped glowing, and Eric looked at her in shock. "No –Ariel!"

Ariel turned around and looked at Eric. "Go-Go-Goodbye."

Eric took her hands. "Ariel, I'm giving you this." In her hands, he placed the ring. "I don't want to bind you to anything, but know that'll I never forget you. I love you Ariel, and I could never love anyone else. I'll never forget you." He kissed her for the last time.

Ariel didn't want to go, but she felt a pull, as if there was string attached to the back of her belly button. She was dragged back into the ocean. She watched Eric, until she finally dipped beneath the waves.

Forever.


	10. The Flute

**Hey, I know it may seem odd to some of you that Eric was so accepting of Ariel's behind a mermaid. But:**

**A: he loves her/the ocean**

**B: I didn't have time for another conflict XD**

**C: Eric needed to know she was a mermaid in order for everything to work out.**

**Just sayin', and thanks for reading!**

**And even though it seems a little bit sad right now, I really like continuing the story. I think it gives it a little bit more depth. One thing I never got about the little mermaid is why her dad just let her go…I always thought her family would put up more of a fight! If I ran away for some boy, I'd probably be killed….XD Ah well, still a great movie! **

**Now no one ever said love was easy, so be prepared for Ariel and Eric to be put through a lot of crap! But also remember [no promises!] it's DISNEY. Home of happy endings! However, this is fanfic…*laughs evilly***

**Please review! :D**

Ariel did not wish to follow her father. In fact, if the Trident was not forcing her deeper and deeper into the ocean, she would have just swum back to the surface. Eric still loved her when he knew she was a mermaid, she could live in the bathtub! But there was still the invisible cord attached to her bellybutton, and Ariel still was forced to take the long, cold, swim to hell.

She looked back up to the surface? What was Eric doing right now? Was he upset? She had no way of knowing. She thought back to the morning, when Carlotta had awakened her.

"_Hey, Carlotta!" Eric whispered, standing by the door._

"_Yes dearie?" The kindly woman asked, tilting her head._

"_Now I just talked to Ariel, she's awake, but I need you to have her get dressed. I'm going to propose to her, and I really don't want her to be in her nightgown."_

_Carlotta's eyes went wide, and she was about to squeal with joy, but Eric frantically waved his hands, silently begging her not to. "Carlotta, please! Now don't tell her anything, just be…casual."_

_Carlotta smiled and went upstairs._

…

"_Ariel! You awake, darling?"_

_Ariel sat up. "Good morning Carlotta!"_

_Carlotta truly tried to keep the secret in. She couldn't. She smiled and squealed. "Eric is going to ask you to marry him! Go on - get dressed!"_

_Ariel's eyes went wide and she smiled. Married! She had never felt better than she had at that moment._

Ariel knew. And that made departure all the more painful.

…

Ariel sighed and tried to stall the descent. Why was she still hoping? Like Eric would be able to leap into the water and pull her out! Like the ocean would drain! Like her father would change his mind! Like her sisters in front of her would say something! Like anything good would happen! But her sisters swam home quickly, as if they were the ones in trouble. Soon, it was only her and Daddy.

"Daddy, please let me go back." Ariel stopped, and Triton did too, in shock.

"Ariel, how could you even think I would let you go? After you _ran away, defied me, lied to me, and transformed yourself into a barbarian!_ All for some stupid savage?" Triton tugged his trident forward, jerking Ariel closer.

"Ow!" she exclaimed, grabbing her side. Her rib was still tender from the break.

"Ariel!" Triton swam over and examined her, his eyes setting on the large protrusion of her rib.

"Please let me go back! Daddy, he loves me!" Ariel exclaimed.

"Loves you?" Triton bellowed. "_Loves you_? He _**deformed**_ you! Do you not _see_ what he did?"

"Daddy, please!"

Ariel felt the tug on her belly button again, and was sent forward, in front of Triton. The two swam home in silence.

After a while, Triton calmed down. He saw his youngest daughter sitting, looking out the window. He then decided to go talk to her. "Ariel?"

She swam off to her room.

…

Eric was not an emotional man. He remembered he cried at his parents' funeral, when he was six. Their ship had gone down in the middle of a storm, and Eric's mother chose to throw her son into the lifeboat, but missing it herself. After that, he didn't like to cry anymore. He tried to hold back his tears, he saw it as a sign of weakness.

But he cried for Ariel. Hard. He had known her for such a short time, but she was **the one**. He_ knew_ it! And as he was just about to propose…bam. She was taken away. And Eric would probably never see her again. He walked out to the beach. He just felt like…maybe, maybe, there was a hope. Maybe she was waiting for him. Maybe she was a human again. Maybe her father would let her come back.

Maybe.

Eric walked out to the beach. He took off his boots and rolled up his pants, wading into the water. He walked out to a large rock and sat on it, playing his flute. He turned his head to the left.

He saw Ariel.

His eyes went wide, but the shock did not last. He ran through the water almost as fast as he could run on land.

"Ariel! ARIEL!" he yelled, smiling.

He stopped. She was right by that rock, right? He looked around. She wouldn't have just swum away. Eric cursed. Now he was just seeing things! Swearing, he whipped his flute into the ocean.

He sat down in the ocean, soaking himself to the bone. Like it mattered anymore.

…

Ariel sat in her shell bed, picking the pedals off a flower. "He loves me…he loves me not…he loves me!" Ariel smiled for a second, and then realized that it probably didn't matter. She whipped the stem out the window.

"…Ariel?..." Arista peered around the doorframe. "Can we come in?"

"Fine." Ariel mumbled, rolling over so she was looking at the ceiling. Soon, her sisters were peering down at her.

"Listen," Attina began. "We're very sorry you had to come back, but you don't belong there! You're a mermaid, Ariel. But look! To make it all better, we brought you presents."

Ariel barely registered the gifts her sisters had bought her. Didn't belong there? _Didn't belong there_? She was happiest there! She almost had a life! She would be able to dance, sing, live, love! She had it all! But in a "make up effort" her sisters laid out shirts, new shell bras, and jewels on her lap. They giggled and pinned back her hair with new combs. The piled necklaces on her and they sprinkled glitter on her tail. Ariel just sat there like a doll.

As if it mattered anymore.

"Ariel, you'll get over him!" Alana sighed, sitting down next to Ariel and enveloping her hands in her own. "He was sorta cute, I guess, but there are much better looking mermen down her! And you're a princess! I'm sure they're just dying to go out with you!"

Attina nodded. "You don't understand now, but you'll thank us in a bit! The human world is a terrible and dangerous place, with wicked people who only want to hurt you! You don't belong up there! Down here is your home and we'll always be here, to make sure you're safe!"

"But because we love you," Adella smiled, "we'll help you sneak out. Not to the surface, no! But maybe to a shipwreck, you can find a human-whatever. See! Everything you need is down here!"

Ariel did not like her sisters' reasoning, or complete refusal to accept how wonderful the human world is, or how important Eric was too her. She let these things pass, for she was too tired, too heartbroken to argue. Not to mention, maybe there would be something down here to remind her of Eric.

The sisters checked for guards, and helped Ariel out through the front door of the palace without raising suspicion. Toting her red bag, Ariel swam off.

…

Eric found a ray of sunshine when he looked out the window later that day. Docking in the harbor was a large, white, baroque ship. It was not from Eric's fleet.

Marie was going home.

But just like the real sun, his happiness had to fade.

"ERIC! Vhere is Seamus? I have been vooking, and vooking, and cannot find zim!" Marie demanded, marching up to Eric. He black hair was piled up in some impossible do, and a cottony pink dress fluffed six feet across. She looked ridiculous.

Eric froze.

How was he supposed to tell her?

"I am leaving today, zand I vish for Seamus to come with! Ve will be married!" Marie turned up her nose, and waited for Eric to reply.

"Uh, Marie." Eric began, "I don't know quite how to tell you this, but Seamus is dead. He tried to kill Ariel and-"

"VAT? Of course, OF COURSE! OF COURSE ze leetle bother zas zumthing to do wit et! Zhe probably keeled em herself! Out of jealously! I new zee vanted him!"

"MARIE! No! Ariel didn't do anything!" Eric tried to calm her down, but to no avail."

"Zu know vat? I HOPE SHE DIES!" Marie pushed Eric against the wall, her voice became deadly. "I knew you loved her, but it'll never work." Marie kissed Eric. Eric pushed her off, anger in his eyes. Marie laughed, "Enzoy zat little prince, for zat is the last kiss you'll ever get."

With that, Marie left.

…

Ariel found a shipwreck after about half an hour of swimming, and decided it was probably as good as any. She was about to go in, when something far up shone, the sun bouncing off it.

Ariel could not suppress her curiosity and swam up to go see it.

It was a whatchamacallit, like Scuttle had told her! She sat down on the rock and looked it over. It was in the best shape she had ever seen, and she must have already had five of them! There was some odd feel on her thumb, and she moved it.

On the flute was inscribed "Eric".

The tears sprung to her eyes, but Ariel didn't know if she was happy she had part of him, or sad he'd always have part of her.


	11. At The Very Least

**Don't worry! Things get better eventually! Besides, all good stories have to have some sadness! Remember Toy Story 3? I cried! And at Up…ah well, hope you enjoy, PLEASE REVIEW! Do you have any idea how encouraging reviews are Love you all! REVIEW!**

Ariel couldn't take it anymore. She looked down at the flute and up at the sky. She needed to go to the surface. She had visited the surface world before, only this time she was going to see a human, not Scuttle. Suddenly feeling a bit paranoid, Ariel checked all around her. Pleased to find no merpeople – and no sharks! – Ariel swam to the surface.

When she broke the surface, her hair was blown all around her face. It was quite windy, and pretty cold, about 45 or 50 degrees. She began to shiver, and tried to clench her teeth. She pulled herself up onto a rock, and just looked at the castle.

Ariel then just sat there, and waited. She would look at the castle, then close her eyes and count down from one-hundred. She hoped every time that she would open her eyes and there would be Eric, walking towards her. It had not worked yet.

It's not like she expected Eric to be out on the beach just waiting for her, but she didn't expect to have to wait for so long! She sat on the rock, bringing her tail up to her chest. Goosebumps sprung up on her skin, and her teeth wouldn't stop chattering. She had stopped playing the one-hundred game, for Ariel would not take the chance that Eric might just peek out the window, and she would miss seeing him!

The waves started rolling in harder and harder, and Ariel began to fear falling off the rock. She wanted to be seen, so she pushed herself up, scraping her abs. Her hair blew behind her, like a flag. She tried to hide her tail, so if anyone else saw her, they wouldn't know she was a mermaid.

Ariel felt like she was waiting for the whole day, a whole lifetime, but in reality, it was only a few hours. But the sun began to set, and Ariel realized she surely would soon be missed at home. She sighed, hoping Eric would come soon. But she pushed herself farther up on the rock. She was waiting for true love.

And that was worth at least another fifteen minutes.

...

Triton sat in his bedroom. He sank into his favorite plushy chair; hand on his forehead, staring out the window. He remembered when Ariel was little, he would put her on his lap and read her stories. She really liked the princess stories.

"_Daddy!" Ariel swam up to Triton. Her hair had only grown out to her shoulders, but that was pretty long for a six-year-old. She wore a little purple tank top, and her blue eyes seemed to take up half her face. She clutched a golden book of fairy tales to her chest. _

_Triton laughed. "What is it, little one?"_

"_Will you read me a story? Please Daddy?" Ariel asked, tilting her head._

_She was so cute, as if he could refuse her! "Of course, sweetie!" Triton picked her up and placed her on his lap, enjoying the sound of her laughter._

_Triton cleared his throat. "Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess. She had flowing golden hair and big brown eyes. She had a happy family in a large castle. She had a beautiful voice, and she would sing and enchant all the little animals in the forest. One day, she was walking and singing in the forest, when an evil witch heard her. She wanted to have a daughter of her own to sing for her, but had no children. She snatched the beautiful princess and locked her in a tower. The princess stayed there for three years, singing and humming for the witch."_

"_That's not very nice." Ariel mentioned. "If anyone wanted to keep me somewhere I didn't want to be, I'd leave in a second!"_

_Triton laughed. "Good for you, Ariel! I'll always be here to help you. Don't let anyone hold you back."_

_Ariel smiled, and Triton continued reading. "One day, the witch left the tower to go collect some berries for dinner. The princess started singing again, and a handsome prince heard her while he was walking through the forest. Curious, he followed the voice until he reached the tower. He climbed up the side of the tower and rescued the princess. They fell in love, got married, and lived happily ever after. The End."_

_Ariel put her two cents in again. "I'm a princess! Will I get a prince too? I think I should!"_

_Triton laughed. "You will, sweetie. And he'll be the luckiest merman in the world."_

What had changed? One day, Ariel was his sweet little girl, sitting on his lap. The next, she was just a rebellious teenager, headed to the _surface_. Of all places to run to, why would she go there? Did she not remember what they did to her mother? Not just any mermaid, her very own mother! Did it not matter to her anymore, had she forgotten? Or was it something he did?

Triton didn't know.

…

Eric kept looking at all the pictures Ariel had drawn. He could tell which ones were the first she had drawn. The people were a bit crude, with large heads and oddly – shaped hands. But as the days progressed, her drawings became better and better. She also seemed to enjoy drawing this big red crab and a blue-and-yellow fish.

But there was the picture she had shown him before she left. It was a picture of a mermaid, turning into a human. They looked strikingly like Ariel. Eric finally realized that Ariel had been trying to tell him the truth all along. If only he had known! If only he had thought about it a little more, looked a little closer. Maybe he could've protected her, stopped her from going back.

But he'd never know now, so he was stuck here, looking at the last memories he had of Ariel. He flipped to another picture and saw a picture of him and Ariel together. Eric smiled and his eyes filled with tears. Why couldn't the pictures be real?

Eric stood up and walked outside. He couldn't just stay in the castle and live in this little bubble of hope. He walked out the door and down the stairs, onto the beach. He kicked some of the larger shells, watching as they splashed into the ocean, sending out little ripples. He looked up and saw a lot of red: it looked a lot like Ariel's hair.

He put a hand to his head, cursing himself for seeing her everywhere. He couldn't do this! He had to go inside and maybe lay down for a bit. He started to walk back to the castle, but turned around after a few steps. Maybe he wasn't seeing things this time, maybe it really was her!

At the very least, there was hope.


	12. Thin Ice

**First off, REVIEW. I'll update again after **_**three more reviews**_**…come on guys. 100s of hits to a chapter and two reviews kinda sucks…**

**Well, one bad part, one good. Bad = lacrosse is over! :[ That makes me quite unhappy. But good = school is almost over! *celebratory music* Anywho, doubt you care, to the story!**

Ariel rolled onto her back again, looking and the swirling hues of orange and purple that made up the night sky. The sun was beginning to set. She should probably head home soon, her sisters could cover for her for only so long, and she would surely be missed. That is, if they weren't all out looking for her already. She blew her bangs out of her face, but they quickly fell back down.

"Ariel?"

Ariel sat up and pushed her bangs out of her eyes with her right hand. Did someone just call her name? Ariel quickly scanned the ocean. Oh _please_ don't let father have found her! Not before she had gotten to see Eric! Ariel tried to scoot farther down on the rock, and hid behind it, back to the beach.

"Ariel!"

Oh no, she heard it again! Biting her lip, she pressed herself into the side of the rock, hoping Father would not see her, or just think she was an oddly-shaped piece of coral. She didn't know, just something! She'd surely land in trouble if she was forced back home!

"ARIEL!"

The voice was louder now! Much, much louder! Ariel's beat faster and faster, as if it was to burst out of her chest! Ariel's breathing heightened, and she clamped a hand to her décolleté, as if it could calm her heart from within. Her fingernails dug into the soft green moss of the rock, as if that would keep her secure_. No father_, Ariel thought. _Please, just let me stay! Why must you hold me back?_ Ariel closed her eyes shut. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist and pull her off the rock.

"NO! LET ME GO!" Ariel's eyes were clenched as tight as her teeth. She tried to shake out of her father's grasp. "Daddy! STOP!"

"I'm not your father!" A voice laughed.

Ariel's eyes opened in shock, and her body went limp. "ERIC!" she screamed. She twisted her body so that she was hugging him. "Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, oh my goodness…" she kept repeating. "I can't believe you came! I was hoping, but, oh I'm just so happy you're here! ERIC!" Ariel smiled.

Eric laughed and hugged her back. "How long have you been waiting here?"

"I don't even know." Ariel smiled. "But I'm going back when the sun sets, before I'm missed.

Eric's face fell. "Once the sun sets? Well, I guess that means you have to go." He sighed, but didn't put Ariel down.

Ariel swiveled her head around and saw, indeed, the sun was long past set. She bit her lip, exhaled loudly, and looked up at Eric. "Well…goodbye."

"It doesn't have to be goodbye forever." Eric smiled. "Come back tomorrow. An hour before the sun sets. Every night you can. I'll wait for you until the sun sets. After the sun sets, I'll know you aren't coming."

Ariel smiled, the notion setting in her head. "Done. I'll be back tomorrow!"

"Promise?" Eric asked.

"Promise." Ariel looked up. "It's so much…cooler when the sun sets. I don't think I would get burned."

Eric furrowed his brow. "You probably wouldn't. Why do you mention this?"

"Well," Ariel replied, blowing her bangs out of her face. Again. "I can't be out of water for too long, or else my tail dries out. That's very bad. However, I don't know how long I can go before there are any consequences. So far, my record is six hours. So I was thinking, maybe I could sleep on the beach tonight? I never have before. I'll go back in the morning, and visit again before sunset.

Ariel had not been thinking about her sisters who had to cover for her, her father who would be worried, or the trouble she would surely land in. All she thought about was Eric, Eric, Eric! However, Eric did not know about any on the consequences Ariel might face, so he heartily agreed. In fact, he set her down in the water for a minute, and went inside to get her something to rest her head on. But not without a kiss.

…

Andrina was rummaging through her dresser drawers, desperately looking for some jewels. She was reading to go merman-hunting again and needed to look her best in order to do it. She eventually found a necklace that would do in a pinch. She opened her makeup caddy and sat down in front of her mirror. To her dismay, it was practically empty. She sighed and looked in all her other drawers, hoping at least some eyeshadow or mascara would show up. It didn't.

Sighing, Andrina went over to Ariel's mirror and opened her makeup caddy. It hadn't been touched since she got it for her sixteenth birthday. All the jewelry and makeup the sisters had bought for her was jammed in a drawer, just gathering dust. Andrina rummaged through her drawer and picked out one of the necklaces Alana had bought. It was made of sea diamonds and opals. It was beautiful, rare, and expensive. Not that Ariel had noticed. Andrina switched necklaces, sticking her old yellow one in the drawer.

Andrina then took Ariel's purple fold-out makeup caddy. There were so many lipsticks, glosses, shadows, mascaras! Andrina placed a hand on her heart, as if it would keep her from exploding. She sat down and let down her hair. She was going to look beautiful today. She took Ariel's eyeliner and started putting it on.

"Andrina! That's Ariel's makeup!" Arista swam out of their room, hands on hips.

"No it's not." Andrina replied.

"Oh yes it is! It has her name on the side of the caddy!" Arista protested, swimming closer.

"So what? She's not using it." Andrina rolled her eyes and put on some light pink eyeshadow.

"But she'll be home soon? What if she needs it for tomorrow?"

Andrina looked up at Arista "Face it Ari. We didn't help Ariel sneak out, we helped her escape. She's not coming back."

…

And Ariel kept her word. For the past twelve days, she had visited Eric. She moped, acting much more dramatic about the situation than she actually felt. She was still furious at her father, naturally, but the flow of her anger had slowed. She could've talked to him, but the complete disconnect was essential to her plan.

Lunch was eaten every day at two in the palace. Ariel would always poke at her meal, across the table from her father. Every once in a while, she would look up and just see the hurt and the pain in his face. Ariel would bite her lip and look down. She felt awful, just awful; that she had to hurt him, but that all seemed to be forgotten once she was with Eric.

Almost towards the end of lunch, Ariel would fake a surge of distress and swim off to her room. She would wait about fifteen minutes to make sure no one was coming after her, then swim out the window and sneak off to the surface. She would return by six.

And today was no different. Ariel poked at her algae, eating a little bit, but she was too preoccupied with thoughts of Eric to be hungry. She dipped her head and then pretended to stifle a cry, and swam off to her room. She laid down on her bed and looked out the window. The clock caught her eye.

It said 5:30.

5:30? 5:30? Oh no, oh no, OH NO! Eric probably thought she had forgotten, didn't care! Maybe he left too! The sun was already beginning to set! Oh, she had completely missed lunch! She was eating dinner, dinner! Oh no, oh no! Curse her forgetfulness! Ariel swam out the window and to the surface.

Hopefully he'd still be there.

…

Triton had had enough. For thirteen days now Ariel had only moped. He got up from the table and told the guards to watch over his daughters. He swam to the girl's room and knocked on the door. When there was no response, he opened the door. She was gone.

He called her name. "Ariel? Ariel! ARIEL!"

No response.

Triton looked out the window. He saw his daughter swimming to the surface. AGAIN. Triton saw red and swam out the window. He thought he had stopped this.

And he did not like being proved wrong.

Triton was not the youngest merman in the ocean, nor the most in shape or athletic. But anger filled him with power, and he caught up to Ariel in seconds. He broke the water half a minutes after Ariel had, and saw that she was embracing the same barbarian as before. What could she possibly see in him? Triton couldn't watch any longer.

"ARIEL!"

Ariel's red head snapped around, blue eyes grew wide, and Triton could almost hear her stomach drop.

Triton didn't need to explain anything to her. She knew what she was doing was wrong. In fact, explaining anything to her just might insult her intelligence. So silently Triton sent out a gold beam, knocking the two apart. Ariel was sucked under the water, and Eric was knocked back to the beach. Triton went under the water himself, and sent out another beam from the trident.

It spread across the ocean, coating the surface with a thin layer of ice from beneath. He watched as Ariel tried to swim up again, but was unable to break through. She swam as far in as she could and tried to press her hand through: she was putting all her strength into it.

Triton watched as the human merely shook his head, and pressed his own hand against the ice.


	13. The Potion

**Well, as promised – as speedy of an update as I could manage! :D you know I love you guys! Now, I'll update again after FIVE MORE REVIEWS. Sounds good? I hate to try and force it out of you guys, but it takes me a good hour plus to write a chapter, depending on which one I'm writing XD, so the least you can do is give me five minutes. Well, love you all and to the story of immense love and tragedy!**

"I expect you to follow me." Triton spoke, his voice deep. "I don't wish to force you again."

Ariel looked up at Eric, as the tears from her eyes blended with the ocean. The two kids looked up at each other until Eric rolled off the pier. Eric bit his lip. Maybe he could pull her out of the ocean, get a chance to talk to her. Apparently she couldn't get out by herself, Eric climbed onto the pier. Ariel's eyes went big and she followed him. She stopped for a second, but Eric motioned for her to follow him to the end of the pier, and he mouthed 'I need to talk to you'. Eric sat down and swung his legs over to the other side of the pier. Ariel was trapped underneath…ice? Eric could break the ice a little bit and pull her out. He pushed himself off the pier and onto the ocean. Eric thought the ice would hold him.

It didn't.

Eric plunged feet first into the ocean. He was caught completely off guard and did not react. He just sunk deeper and deeper into the ocean. His breath all came out in a desperate, but obviously fruitless, gasp for air. The cold water of the ocean instantly stunned him, and his soaked clothes only dragged him down farther and faster.

Now Ariel was not the strongest mermaid, by any means. She could barely open a jar by herself. And Eric was not the lightest man. Though it was mostly muscle, he weighed about 180 pounds. Ariel should not have been able to even push down, much less lift up Eric. But the little mermaid didn't stop to think about what she should be able to or not be able to do. Instead, she just ran to her love and wrapped her arms around his stomach, pulling him closer and closer to the hole he had already made in the surface.

She yanked him up and onto the surface, pushing him as far away from the hole as possible. She used her arms to crawl closer to him. She pushed Eric's hair out of his face, and whispered to him.

"Eric? Eric! Are you okay?"

Now in all reality, Eric was perfectly fine. A little shocked, but most people who nearly died would be. If Ariel looked closely, she would know his breathing was going back to a normal rate, and his eyes were beginning to flutter open. But Ariel was too busy panicking to look closer.

"Eric! Oh Poseidon, what happened to you? Was I too late? Eric I'm sorry! So, so sorry! Eric, please wake up!" Ariel bit her lip and grabbed his hand.

Just as the first tear was about to slip from Ariel's eye, Eric coughed and sat back up.

"Ariel! You're, you're on land! I-I fell! What just-?" Eric spluttered out.

Ariel held a finger to his lips to shush him. "What's important is I'm here now. And regardless of what my father may say, I'm coming back here."

"Ariel! What on earth are you talking about?" Eric started to say.

A look of fierce determination in her eyes, Ariel crawled back to the hole. "I'll be back!" she promised, blew a kiss to Eric, and slipped inside the hole and back into the ocean.

…

Ariel did not know what sprinting was, but she swam faster than anyone could possibly ever sprint. By the time she saw her father, she slower to a normal swimming speed, and then slowed again.

"You don't have to come home right now, Ariel." Triton smiled, a look of victory in his eyes. "Now that I'm assured you will not be going to the surface, you are free to swim! You can even talk to other mermen, if you so please." Laughing, Triton swam home.

For that moment, Ariel considered her own father to be an enemy. She shook her head, hoping to get that thought out. That couldn't possibly be healthy.

Besides, Ariel had a mission to complete. And her father thought she wouldn't be going to the surface. Let him think whatever he wants, Ariel knew what was right.

Ariel was once again, heading to Ursula's lair.

She swam quickly, in order to avoid detection as well as she possibly could. She entered Ursula's lair very slowly, and peeked around the corner. Remembering what Ursula had said about lurking in doorways, she quickly entered. She expected a snide comment, Ursula to mention at least something. But nothing came.

Gathering confidence, Ariel swam all around Ursula's lair, hoping for a sign that she was at least there. Finally, she found Ursula's bedroom. Laying in the middle of the floor was a little pile of ash. Ariel gasped and put a hand to her mouth. No! Wait, it was good that the Sea Witch was dead, she was her father's only opposition! But no, how else would Ariel get to the surface? No she needed the sea witch! Ariel placed her hands over her mouth and swam out! No, she-she needed something!

She flung open the cabinet that the sea witch kept everything. She grabbed potions. If it didn't mention anything about 'humans', Ariel threw it behind her. Eventually, she came upon one that read:

'_Mermaid to Human Potion. Take three sips, and the mermaid will instantly become a human._'

Smiling, Ariel took the potion and swam up to the surface as fast as she could. It took her a while to find the exact hole Eric had fallen through, but she found Eric's castle quickly just from habit. But eventually she was right near the hole. She opened the bottle and took three quick sips.

Instantly, she felt as if her legs were on fire. She looked down, and they were encased in a yellow bubble, being ripped apart by magical pulses. Still gripping the bottle, Ariel pushed herself through the hole.

She saw Eric, still waiting for her, sitting on the pier. She sat, still a little too shocked to crawl over to him. Eric instantly became uncomfortable and walked out to her. He handed her his shirt to wrap around her waist. Ariel did and stood up.

"How on earth did you do that? You're not going to have another Seamus come after you are you?" Eric laughed, he meant it as a joke.

"No!" Ariel laughed back. "I did this all by myself! I used this potion!" Ariel handed over the bottle she was still holding.

Eric was smiling when he read the front, but he flipped it over and read the back. Suddenly, he wasn't smiling.

"What's wrong?" asked Ariel.

"Did you read the back?" Eric asked, his voice with a bit of waver to it.

Ariel took the bottle back and read the back:

_The mermaid will be a human permanently. However, if he or she touches the ocean, they will instantly become a merman or mermaid again. Except this time, it will be irreversible._

"Do you know what this means, Ariel?" Eric asked. "You can never be in the ocean again."


	14. A Proposal

**Do you know how many reviews I asked for? FIVE. I really don't think it's that much. After almost two weeks, I have three. It takes me HOURS to structure and type a chapter. I review the stories I read, so I know FOR A FACT that it takes a minute – at most! – in order to review. I don't think five reviews, for several hours of my time, is too much to ask. Reviews are motivating, and if I get reviews, I want to write more. Now, I know the story's ending, but you guys don't. If you guys don't think the story is good enough to waste a minute of your time on, then I won't finish it. If that's what you want, then by all means, don't review. SO! I want SEVEN reviews, five plus the two I didn't get last time. Now because I still love all of my readers [even if they don't review :/ ] I won't make you click onto this without getting a chapter. So come on, loves, SEVEN PLEASE.**

"It gets worse." Eric said darkly, jabbing his thumb lower on the bottle.

Ariel read a messy, curly script, clearly added on later to the bottle, most likely by Ursula:

_Note:_

_If the mermaid enters the ocean against her will, then she does NOT become a mermaid again. Instead, she becomes a lump of sea foam, doomed to float the ocean forever._

"Does this mean what I think it means?" Ariel gulped.

"Yes." Eric sighed, pushing a hand through his hair. "You can't go in the ocean again, Ariel. Ever."

Ariel sighed. "Well this is what I wanted!" she started to perk up. "I'm a human! Eric I'm here! On land! ERIC! I'm a HUMAN!" she spun around, almost delirious with joy. "I HAVE LEGS! Haha!"

Eric was glad Ariel was coping…quite well, especially considering what she had just learned. But he snapped out of his thoughts at the sight of his girl spinning around – and occasionally falling down – on her own two legs! He laughed, and grabbed her around her waist, picking her up again.

They began walking back to the castle, smiles all around. Eric had a plan to execute, and it was time for dinner and bed.

Time had flown through the rest of the day. The two had decided to stay indoors, playing games, reading, talking. All troubles seemed to be forgotten. Ariel eventually became too tired with the day's endeavors to scarcely hold her head up, and Eric had to practically carry her up to her room. Carlotta shooed him away, and got Ariel ready for bed.

Now it was past midnight, with a light mist falling over the kingdom. Eric tried to be quiet, but was altogether unsuccessful. The floorboards creaked, and Ariel's bedroom door made an awful screeching noise and caused Eric to wince. He held up a candle and looked around the room, finally, it bounced off something shiny. Ah-ha! Eric quickly walked over to her bedside table. Laying on it was the ring he gave her, when he thought they had no future together. Yes! He knew she kept it! Instant relief washing over him, Eric stepped forward.

Causing the floor to emit a large creak. Eric froze, Ariel stirred, but did not wake, much to his relief. How could he ever explain himself? Carefully, gingerly, he stepped forward and grabbed the ring, enclosing it in his palm. He turned around and stepped forward – right on that cursed floorboard!

But this time, it released a creaking sound much, much louder than before. Eric winced, hoping, praying on the slightest chance that Ariel might not notice.

He was not so lucky this time.

She stirred and sat up, pushing her bangs out of her eyes. She gasped, unaware at why there was a stranger in her room. But she quickly settled as she realized it was Eric, his figure made out by the light of the moon shining through the window. She grabbed a match from the side table and very, very carefully lit the candlestick [after all, she was just getting used to the power of fire.].

"Eric?" she questioned. "Eric, what are you doing here?"

Eric bit his lip. A thousand possibilities ran through his mind: running, lying, laughing. But although this was neither the most ideal, nor most romantic, it would at very least make for an interesting story. He mustered up all his courage, and hoped Ariel could not his heart beating all the way across from her.

"Ariel." Eric stated her name, drawing her focus, as well as reminding himself about the new, and most important, facet in his life. "This isn't what I had in mind at all when I was planning this." He laughed. "In fact, this was probably the farthest from what I had imagined." He ran his fingers through his hair, and sat down on the bed next to her.

Ariel sat up and drew her legs into a crook. Her face portrayed a quizzical look, but she gave him a sweet smile, as if to urge him along.

Eric pulled out the ring and held it in from of Ariel. "Ariel. My little mermaid. I love you, and please do me the honor of marrying me. I promise I'll be the most loving husband I can possibly be. In fact-"

Eric had begun to ramble, but Ariel knew exactly what he meant. "Eric! Yes! Yes, yes, yes, and more yesses!" she flung her arms around him, hugging him so tight he felt as if he was about to explode! Except he could not decide if he was going to explode from her ridiculous strength, or the happiness that was filling him to the brim.

"Like I said," Eric leaned back a little, still keeping Ariel in his arms. "This was not the best timing…I should probably let you go back to bed."

Ariel laughed. "Stay. Please?" she looked up at him with big blue eyes, and like he could refuse her now!

She pulled him a back a little, but he offered no resistance. He wrapped his arms around her, and the two were asleep within minutes.

…

Eric announced the engagement to Carlotta and Grimsby the next morning, and needless to say, the two were thrilled. Carlotta began rushing around, beginning to start on the wedding plans.

"Come dear! This is your wedding to plan!" Carlotta chuckled, grabbing Ariel's thin wrist and pulling her along.

Ariel sat in the library with Carlotta, picking out the theme she wanted. Due to her origins, Ariel wanted a sea themed wedding. She picked out flowers that somewhat resembled coral, and fluffy centerpieces and decorations. The cake, baked by Louie, of course, was to be decorated with starfish, sixteen towers high, one for each year Ariel had spent under the ocean.

"Come upstairs, love! You must be dressed!" Carlotta smiled, grabbing Ariel and lifting her back onto her feet.

"Carlotta!" Ariel laughed. "I'm already dressed!"

"Those are clothes you can wear around the castle, not out in public!" Carlotta laughed.

"But Carlotta, the dress is beautiful!"

"Thank you dearie, but this is the first time you'll be in public and the future princess! You need to be extra beautiful!"

Ariel rolled her eyes. Being a princess was a little more complicated than she thought! Regardless, she followed Carlotta upstairs.

Wishing to make things as least complicated as possible, she wore the first dress Carlotta brought out. It was off her shoulders and a light violet. It cinched in at her waist and was trimmed with a ruby red lace. Ariel's hair was pulled back with diamond combs and she wore shiny silver shoes.

"Are you ready to pick out your wedding dress?" Carlotta smiled.

Ariel spun around, smiling. "Is that where we're going?"

"After lunch!" Carlotta laughed. "You're too thin!"

Ariel rolled her eyes, this was not a new comment from Carlotta.

After lunch, Ariel was rushed into town to go see about her wedding dress. Word spread quite quickly throughout the townspeople: gossip had been scarce and it was not often that a royal wedding occurred, after all! By the time Ariel entered Madame Tespit's shop, there were piles of wedding dresses laid out.

"Princess!" Madame Tespit herself rushed forward, clasping one of the girl's hands between her own. "I knew you'd be coming shortly! Now, now – we'll close up shop, I'll dedicate every day I need to in order to find you the perfect dress! Now why don't we get started dearie?"

Ariel was whisked away and stripped of her dress. Some material would be thrown over her head. Madame Tespit would circle around Ariel once or twice then go 'no, no, no!', rip the dress of Ariel, and replace it with another before Ariel truly got a chance to look in the mirror. This process was repeated what felt like thousands, but was only dozens, of times until Ariel yelled "STOP!"

The store practically froze, all looking at the scarcely known princess.

"What do you need, darling?" Madame Tespit asked very quietly.

Ariel stepped forward towards the mirror. The white fabric shone like the top of the ocean. The bodice was almost skin tight, but Ariel could still breathe quite comfortably in it. The dress fluffed out at her hips, with swirls of cream fabric falling to the floor, not unlike sea foam. Wavy, imperfect, and snowy ribbon, somewhat resembling sea weed, wrapped around her waist and the hem of her dress. The dress was strapless, showing off Ariel's fair skin. Small – imitation! – pearls lined up around the top of her bodice and were speckled around the dress.

It was perfect.

"I love it!" Ariel exclaimed, spinning around. The dress fluffed out perfectly. Ariel smiled at Madame Tespit. "It's the most beautiful dress I've ever seen!"

"Why thank you dearie!" Madame Tespit swelled with pride. " 'Twas nothing, just something I whipped out, truly…now, you'll need that wrapped up, won't you?"

Ariel shimmied out of the dress. Madame Tespit gingerly took it to the counter and wrapped it up.

Ariel carried out the big dress box and sat down in the ornate carriage. The sun was setting, and she was eager to get back to the castle and Eric.

…

The two sat in front of the fireplace. It was warmer than Ariel was used to being, and she constantly fidgeted, rotating herself to keep one part of her body from getting too hot.

"Eric?" she asked. The two were involved in a game a checkers, and needless to say, Ariel was beating him.

"Yes?" Eric looked up, his hand resting on the piece he was about to move.

"Can we go for a walk on the beach?" Ariel asked. She needed fresh air!

"Are you trying to get out of the game before I beat you?" Eric laughed.

Ariel smiled. "Hey, I'm pretty sure I'm winning!" the two laughed. "but please Eric, I haven't been out to the beach in days! I need fresh air!" she rolled onto her stomach and propped her face up on her hand, awaiting his reply.

The corner of Eric's mouth tightened. "You know we can't do that Ariel. If you touch the ocean, you'll be a mermaid – forever! Or even worse, sea foam! I can't lose you again! I love you too much! I'm sorry, but we just can't!"

Ariel sat up. "I'm not six years old, Eric! I can see where the tide is lapping up! I'll stay away from it! I just need fresh air! Don't you trust me!"

"Of course I do Ariel, don't ever think that! I just want to be careful!" Eric reasoned.

"My father did the exact same thing! He was too concerned with the 'what if?'s to actually see that there was nothing wrong! I did what I thought was right, and I found you! I can take care of myself Eric!" Ariel sat up and crossed her arms, practically daring him to defy her.

"Do you promise you'll stay at least a reasonable distance away from the ocean?" Eric asked, not having a leg to stand on in this argument.

"Promise!" Ariel smiled, knowing she had gotten her way. "I don't want to be sea foam either!"

Eric smiled. "Fine, we'll go. But once we get back inside, I'm beating you at checkers!"

Ariel laughed. "As if!"

Eric grabbed her hand, and the two walked out onto the sandy beach.


	15. Broken By What's Unspoken

**:D OK, I got two reviews instead of seven. And while that was not encouraging, I still REALLY wanted to post the chapter. I didn't want to lose you guys! D: Not to mention, the two reviews I did get were very encouraging! So thanks you guys! Love You! So here's the thing. It's painful to both me and you to hold reviews over your head. Now the more reviews, the quicker the update, I promise you that much. They're nice to get and very encouraging. But I won't set any minimums for you guys. So please, review, show me you care. But I'll post for you…in fact, I wrote an extra- long chapter. Partially because that's what it called for, and partially because I love all the hits I got, despite the minimal reviews.**

**Word Count: 3344 words! Oh my goodness! [That's a LOT for me!]**

The moon cast down on the sand on the beach, seeming to illuminate it brighter than Ariel had ever seen it before. Then again, she had never really seen the beach at night. She took a deep breath, pausing for just a moment to inhale the smell of the salt from the sea, and to hear the tide lapping quietly against the rocks. Oh how she missed the ocean! She wanted to wade in, feel the ocean cool on her feet. She wanted to be able to swim again, to see her old friends! The looked out, and even in the dark of the night she noticed a large boulder in the middle of the ocean: she had been there before. This alone brought back waves of memories. How wonderful it would be to wade out to rock, and sit there with Eric, just watching the stars.

But that was no longer a possibility. She did not seem to realize just how much she had loved her home. But it was not as if she felt trapped or imprisoned in her home up on land. She had the man she loved, and what many women would consider a perfect life, living in a lavish castle with servants. But Ariel didn't see her new riches as the ideal life. Every day was a new adventure for her: towns that had not been seen, objects she had never found on shipwrecks, and learning more about the objects that she had. That was the perfect life, the life she had always dreamed of. While choosing between her old home and the life she had always dreamed of, Ariel was convinced that she made the right choice. It was not an easy choice, but the outcome of it was satisfying.

And the ocean would always be there! There to watch, there to smell. She just couldn't go in it anymore. She kicked off her heeled shoes [she was getting better at walking in them, she truly was!] for while she could not feel the ocean, she could still feel the sand and the shells.

Ariel took one last deep breath and grabbed Eric's wrist pulling him along as she flew down the stairs. She sprinted down the beach, feeling the sand fly up and knick her knees. She looked out at the ocean, and down at where the tide was dipping. At the edge of the tide was a starfish.

Ariel did not recognize the starfish for one of her friends, but it didn't deserve to die! Who knew how long it had left to live, if any time at all? She tiptoed very carefully to the tide.

"Ariel! What are you doing? Don't get the close!" Eric yelled, running up behind her.

Ariel ignored him and slinked even closer to the starfish. She picked it up and rubbed one finger on it. It was dry, but it seemed to be still alive.

"Ariel throw it in - quickly! Come on!" Eric pleaded, looking at her as if she was insane.

Ariel flung the starfish in waiting for the plunk that notified her it didn't just land on a rock. When she heard it, she turned around and walked back. Ariel turned and stood next to Eric, just as a huge wave crashed up on the shore.

"I'd hate to think of the consequences of you standing there just a moment longer. Ariel, why on earth did you just stand there, as if waiting for your death?" Eric said, fear etched all over his face.

"I needed to make sure it was okay! I saved a life there Eric!" Ariel protested.

"Well I just don't want you to lose yours. While you'd still be alive, a splash would be entering unwillingly. Being sea foam is hardly having a life." Eric reasoned.

"True." Ariel sighed. "I shouldn't be so careless. If I find another starfish, will you throw it in?"

Eric smiled. "Of course."

Ariel sank down on the beach. "You know, I've found quite a few books on shipwrecks. Some of them are too ruined by the time I find them to actually read them, but most are not only in good condition, but quite interesting. I read one about these two children who went to the beach, and they built this…this –oh, what was the word?- sandcastle! Yes, that's it! They built little homes out of sand, and used shells for windows. There was a picture, and they looked so beautiful!"

Ariel dug her nails through the sand, forming a small hill in front of her. She began to very gingerly sculpt it into some kind of cylinder, giving it little pointed edges at the top.

"Can I help?" Eric laughed, feeling like he was a six year old again. Once receiving Ariel's eager nod, he plopped down next to her and started working on the next column. The two built a large base for the castle, and dark brown columns jutted up from it. Swirled towers reached higher.

"I'm going to go find some shells to decorate!" Ariel announced. Sensing Eric's next words, she added "And I won't get too close to the ocean!"

Eric stopped building the castle for a moment and just watched Ariel. She seemed so young, so curious. He had never appreciated the world he was living in: so interesting, with so many different aspects, different ideas for everything. And had Ariel never come along, he probably never would have appreciated any of it.

He suddenly noticed that she had stopped. Her skirt was made into an improvised basket, probably holding seaweed and shells and all sorts of treasures she found. But she just stood there, turned to the side. Her mouth was partly open. She seemed to be waiting for something. Eric stood up and started to walk over to her.

Suddenly she dropped her skirt, the purple material flowered around her ankles, and the shells spilled at her bare, sandy feet. She took off in a powerful sprint, running away from the castle and closer to the docks. Filled with a mixture of curiosity and fear, Eric followed after her. There was this sinking feeling in his stomach, as if something very bad was about to happen.

Eventually, he caught up to her. Out of breath, he asked "Ariel! What did you find?"

Ariel, seeming puzzled, mumbled, " I'm… positive …. I….I – heard my name! Someone called it! I heard it three times!"

Eric furrowed his brow and looked around. No one else was there! At least, not that he could see.

"ARIEL!" the two snapped their heads around, the person drew out her name.

"It's coming from the pier!" without waiting for Eric's comment, Ariel sprinted down the pier. "ANDRINA!"

Eric heard her squeal happily, and knew she was going to be okay. Ariel had told him many, many stories about her sisters. And while he had never met them in person, he felt that he knew more about them then most merpeople probably did. He knew Ariel had not seen her sisters in such a long time, and probably wanted to talk to her. Eric smiled and stuck his hands in his pockets. He should probably head back, but he sort of wanted to watch the two girls reconnect.

…

Triton knew, and he was not surprised, to say the very least. He had expected Ariel to run off. Maybe…maybe he even wanted her to. Ever since she became a teenager, she had been rebellious, foolish. Now bear in mind that she was still his baby girl, and he would never just toss her aside.

No matter what he would be her father, and a father's job was to protect his children, no matter what the cost. Ariel was quite young when her mother died, and may have been too innocent to see the evil of the surface world that pierced the tides that day. Triton had already lost his wife - he did not want to lose one of his daughters as well! For almost a decade he had tried to instill in Ariel the importance of staying under the sea, staying in the kingdom! If she was within the kingdom, at least she was safe.

But to no avail. Ever since she was a child, Triton would have to drag Ariel away from shipwrecks, books, human artifacts. Even then, he knew his daughter's interest in humans was budding, uncomfortably so. It was not budding into a fear, like the rest of her sisters had developed, instead she seemed to just look past everything they had done to her mother, all the fishing, the killing, the destruction they had done to the sea and its inhabitants in order to marginally better their own lives. And who knew how long she had been going to the surface! How lucky she was to not have been snagged by a net, for she would never be able to defend herself! She was too young, too small, too weak. She was just a child.

But Ariel was too independent, and sometimes she needed to learn her lessons by herself. Triton smiled, remembering:

"_Daddy, what's this?" Ariel swiveled around, red hair flying around her face. She held up a little yellow jar._

"_That's mustard, Ariel. You can have some with your dinner tonight if you wish. But just a little, the taste is quite strong." Triton answered._

"_What does it smell like?" Ariel asked, unscrewing the jar._

"_No! Ariel, it's very strong. It'll hurt your sinuses, it will not be a pleasant experience." Triton said._

"_Please, Daddy! I'll bet it's not that bad…." Ariel begged._

"_No Ariel!" Triton said. "I've smelled mustard before, and you haven't. Believe me, I know what I'm talking about."_

_Ariel gave him a snarky look but seemed to obey him. Triton smiled and turned around._

"_WAH- CHOOO!" Ariel loudly sneezed, dropping and breaking the mustard._

"_Ariel! Next time, listen to me! Do you promise?"_

"_Daddy! That hurt! My nose feels like it's going to leap right off my face! Daddy!" Ariel whined, wiping her hand on her nose vigorously. _

"_See Ariel! I do know what I'm talking about, now if you'd listen to me, these kinds of things wouldn't happen." Triton scolded._

"_Daddy, I promise that from now on I'll listen to you! Promise! Promise! Ouch, ouch it HURTS!" Ariel whined._

_Triton frowned. He didn't like seeing Ariel, or any of his daughters, in any kind of pain, no matter how mild. Ever since his wife's death, he was determined to make sure nothing would ever happen to them again. He would not, could not let that happen again._

But Ariel was too fiercely independent. When she was going to learn a lesson, she had to learn it her way. Triton was determined she learned this important one any way that would stick with her. Let her go to the surface! Let her learn how heartless, how cruel the human world can be. Let her take a dangerous step into the world of the very people that killed her mother. Let her learn that she will never need to, and should never want to, enter this world. Then, and only then, would she stay at home, safe and sound, where she belonged.

Ariel loved the ocean; rather, she loved exploring it. Triton knew that she would be back to the beach; she might even be there right now! Now, Ariel was still just a teenage girl, and would always tell her sisters more than she would tell her father. So that is why he sent Andrina to the surface after her. She would probably have an idea where Ariel would be. In fact, in just a few minutes she could probably be at the surface, bringing Ariel back down.

Yes, Ariel would be back to the ocean. Any minute now.

…

Andrina gritted her teeth. Of course she was the one sent to hunt down the ever – elusive baby sister. Triton was always focused on his youngest, erratic daughter – so focused he barely paid any attention to his other daughters!

_Andrina pinned her hair up. It looked so different, so much more mature this way! She was only ten years old, but she felt like a teenager already. She also had gotten a headband from Attina, for tonight was a very special night. It was her first ever ballet recital! _

_It took two months of practicing, every single night, but Andrina won the lead role in the production of __The Princess and the Fish. __She got to wear a different dress than all the other girls: it was light blue and flowed out from her hips. She swirled around in it and it fluffed out perfectly._

_She was so excited! Daddy and all her sisters got a special place in front of the stage, their seats were reserved with a special red ribbon – Andrina had seen it herself! Andrina left the dressing room, now satisfied with her appearance, and went to go stand backstage with the rest of the dancers._

…

"_Daddy!" Ariel whined, crossing her arms and pouting. "I don't want to go! It's so boring!"_

"_Ariel, that's not fair to Andrina!" Triton reasoned. "She has worked very hard on this! In fact, she even got the lead role!"_

"_I don't care!" Ariel pouted, turning her head. "I'll stay home! You guys go, I'll just sit in my room!"_

"_No, Ariel."_

"_I won't even watch television!"_

"_No Ariel!"_

"_I won't eat sugar, or watch television, or bother anyone, or-"_

" _Now you're going and that's final!" Triton turned around and led the six girls out the door. He climbed into the front seat of the carriage and let the maid, Caroline, get the girls situated. _

_Triton entered the auditorium with his daughters. He pulled the ribbon off the seats and went to go throw it away, but Alana snatched it and began to fiddle with it. Triton laughed quietly and sat back down next to her. He looked at his daughters, and then noticed that one very little redhead was missing. Where was Ariel?_

_He turned to the maid, Caroline, and asked her to watch over the girls. With that, he swam off quickly in pursuit of his littlest daughter. She was probably off exploring again. If he rushed, he might be able to make it back before Andrina's performance was over. The question is, where was she hiding?_

…

_It was minutes before curtain, and reassured by the hours of practice she had put in, Andrina was quite calm. When the music began to play, she swam out onto the stage. She executed everything perfectly: she didn't slip or trip, there were no costume malfunctions, and none of her partners threw her off._

_At the end of the performance, everyone swam out to the stage and bowed. Andrina was announced by name. She swam out and smiled real big, looking out into the front and saw… no father. Caroline sat in his place with five of her sisters, all of which were asleep – except Alana, who was playing with the ribbon._

_She watched as her father entered through the back door, ushering a grumpy Ariel. Tears sprung to her eyes as she realized that her father had missed the most important moment of her life._

_All thanks to Ariel._

Andrina gritted her teeth. There was no way her sister got to live the life she couldn't. A life where you were free to do as you please, a life where you could explore, where you could run away, a life where you could find and be yourself! No, everything just had to be dedicated to making sure Ariel stayed home. This time, Ariel wouldn't be escaping. Ariel had taken away her fiancé, her spotlight, and her attention.

This time, Ariel wouldn't just be coming home. She'd be staying home.

…

Ariel sat down on the edge of the pier, amazed at seeing her sister.

"Andrina! I just can't believe you're here!" Ariel gushed leaning towards her baby sister.

"Oh Ariel, I just needed to see you again! I've missed you so!" Andrina lied. "Please come home!"

"Oh Andrina, you don't understand! I've got everything up here!" Ariel leaned in. "I'm to be married!"

"Ohhhh" Andrina cooed. "So you've found a human too?"

"And he's a prince!" Ariel squeaked. "He's kind and nice and sweet and handsome and just wonderful!"

"Oh how wonderful!" Andrina rolled her eyes, undetectable to Ariel in the dark.

"I must admit," Ariel sighed. "I miss my family. I mean, I've never known anything but the sea, daddy and my sisters! Everything is new here! Sometimes I feel just so…ignorant. I'm afraid Eric might start to become impatient with me, he might think I'm stupid." Before waiting for Andrina's reply, Ariel added. "But he loves me! And that's what is important, right? Right! He loves me, and I'm ready to marry him! I love him…"

Andrina sighed. "Oh Ariel, how I've missed your flighty thoughts. I wish I could hug you, but with you up on the pier, and me down in the water, that's quite impossible. Just give me your hands."

Ariel smiled and grabbed Andrina's hands.

With a smirk, Andrina gripped Ariel's wrists and with a sharp yank, brought her into the water. Her mouth opened in shock as her sister dissolved into sea foam between her fingers.

Andrina scream pierced the night like lightning, and Eric's responding footsteps pounded like thunder.

"What's wrong? Is Ariel okay? Are you okay? What happened?" Eric rained down questions on Andrina.

"I-I-I pulled her into the water and she just turned into sea foam!" Andrina stuttered, shocked at what had just happened.

"Oh no, oh no, oh NO! When you pulled her into the water…sea foam!...the spell…oh no! Please, she was under a spell!" Eric said, panicking.

"Spell? What spell?" Andrina squeaked, putting her hand to her forehead.

"To be a human she took a potion that would give her legs. But a side effect says if she enters the ocean, she'll become sea foam!"

"Oh, what have I done?" Andrina panicked.

Eric grabbed a bucket. "Here, is she floating?"

Andrina looked around. "Yes, yes! There she is!"

"Here! Quick! Scoop her up, make sure you get all of her!"

Andrina scooped the sea foam that was her baby sister and handed the bucket back to Eric.

Eric sighed. "What were you planning to do to her? I know you didn't know she'd become sea foam, but why did you even want to pull her into the ocean? What did you expect to happen? Why would you want to hurt her?" he looked straight into Andrina's eyes, demanding an answer.

Andrina spluttered for a bit, not really knowing how to put this gently. Eventually she realized, there was no way to put this gently. "She doesn't belong here. She's a mermaid, Eric. She belongs in the ocean. And no amount of potions or elixirs will make her any more special than the rest of us."

With that, Andrina turned and dove back into the ocean, leaving Eric sitting on the pier holding the remains of his bride.


	16. Forgiveness?

**Well the story is starting to come to an end, so enjoy the updates while they last XD haha reviews, as always, are appreciated. And thanks to those who did review, love ya huns!**

_Set me free, why don't ya babe?_

_Get out my life, why don't ya bay-be?_

'_Cause you don't really love me_

_You just keep me hanging on_

_You don't really need me_

_But you keep me hanging on_

_-You Keep Me Hanging On_

_[Even though this is a girl to boy song, I meant it for Ariel – to – Andrina. 'Cause Ariel's relationship with Eric is peachy. Well, sort of. She's still sea foam.]_

Eric sat on the pier, just looking at the bucket. No royal training, no life lessons, no stories from Carlotta or Grimsby could possibly have given him a rational way to act during this situation. It was not a usual situation for any couple to be in, and Eric didn't know if they could make it through this one. He picked up the bucket and hugged it to his stomach, walking very, very carefully up back to the castle. He leaned against the door with his shoulder and held his breath when the water lapped, praying that it would not slip out of the bucket and through the wooden floorboards.

How do you take care of sea foam? It was not quite alive, but the person inside it was. At least, he hoped so. Does it need to be fed? Watered? Well, the water would evaporate eventually, so Eric figured he should replenish that. But what if that made her drown? Oh, what could he possibly do to help her?

Why would her sister even do that? Why would she pull her into the water? What did she expect to accomplish with that? For heaven's sake, she was her sister! Family is supposed to be there for one another, support each other through everything they do! Family is not supposed to let petty fights or – or _whatever_ it was that got between them plague their thoughts of each other. You'll sometimes yell, sure, but you don't – you don't, oh God…

Eric gripped the sides of his head. Her sister, her _sister_ hadn't been trying to drown Ariel, had she? That wasn't family fighting, that was murder! She had seemed so…so _bitter_ about everything, she truly had. But, but still... NO, families didn't do that!

Eric never had any siblings, and his parents died while he was quite young. Eric never really knew of a real family, he had never had much experience with one before! But he didn't have to in order to know that families didn't do that to each other! He had an improvised family with Grimsby and Carlotta, and they had raised him right. They had taught him that you don't tear down other people like that. You don't tear down anyone like that, especially family members.

Hadn't every child been taught the same lesson?

Ariel's sister did not know of the spell, judging by both her reaction and the fact that only he and Ariel knew. He hadn't even told Carlotta or Grimsby! What would possibly possess her to hurt her sister?

He carried Ariel up to his room. He placed her on the top of a shelf, up and out of the way, where she would not be knocked down or bumped in between cleaning or ordinary ventures of the day. He looked up at her. How could he fix this?

In any other situation, Eric would have a million ideas flood into his head. He would think, and work, and fight, but everything would eventually work out. But no, this time was different. He had no magical powers, but every spell had to be reversed somehow! He could not strike a deal, demand answers, fight off a beast like the prince always did in the fairy tales Carlotta would always read to him when he was young. But still, Eric was convinced. This was a situation that _could_ be fixed.

He just didn't know if he could be the one who fixed it.

…

Andrina's breath came in gasps, and she had to sit down, settle down. She did not, could not have just done that. Did she just do that? She didn't mean to do that to her sister. Oh, how could she ever explain herself? She looked at the bottle in her purse. It was light purple, with Ursula's face on it.

"_Look Daddy!" Andrina squealed. "It's all done!"_

_Triton swam over. Andrina, displeased with how slowly her was swimming, grabbed her creation and swam over to meet him._

"_Look Daddy! Look at it!" she squealed, holding up a clay pot she had made and painted. It took her a few weeks to make, but she was very proud of it. It was the best pot she had ever made!_

"_Why Andrina! That's excellent! You should be proud of yourself!" Triton smiled, holding the multicolored pot up._

"_And I saved up all my allowance and bought this shiny stuff, and I'll go get it and paint in on, and then it'll be big and colorful and shiny and perfect!" Andrina smiled, taking the clay pot from her father._

"_That sounds great Andrina! You have fun, kiddo." Triton smiled, watching his daughter swim away._

_Andrina, very, very gingerly, placed the pot on the tabletop. She swam off to her room to get the glaze._

"_Haha! Flounder!" Ariel yelled as she spun in circles with her best friend. "I'm getting dizzy! Let me go! Haha!"_

_Ariel let go of Flounder's fins and went spinning off…into the dining room table. Andrina's pot went flying off and onto the floor…where it shattered into four pieces._

"_Daddy! Did you see where I put the shiny stuff?" Andrina asked. "I thought I – oh my GOSH! ARIEL!" Andrina swam over to where her pot was. "you – you BROKE IT!" she yelled tears springing to her eyes._

"_Andrina, I'm really, really sorry! Truly, I am!" Ariel bit her lip and dipped her head._

"_I can't believe you! You always ruin EVERYTHING!" Andrina yelled, fists clenched. She wiped her eyes and swam off._

_She had to fix this, once and for all. She grabbed her little blue bag and swam outside. She stopped swimming only when she got to the large purple cave._

"_Ursula?" Andrina peeked around the corner._

"_Get in here child! Do not lurk, it's quite rude." Ursula sneered._

_Andrina swam in. "I – I need a favor. My littlest sister is just – just awful. She messes up everything, she ruins everything! All of the time! It's as if she takes pride in knowing she's ruining my life!"_

_Ursula smirked "Oh, I understand. Perhaps more than you do." Ursula pushed herself up from her vanity seat. "Now, I will make you a potion. When it touches the bare skin of a mermaid, in this case your baby sister, she'll become whatever you want her to be! Now make sure you say OUT LOUD what you want her to be. If you only think it, you'll become what you wish her to be."_

"_Got it." Andrina said, reaching for the potion._

_Ursula snatched the potion out of her grasp. "I really don't think you understand how things work around here! We haven't discussed the matter of payment! You can't get something for nothing you know."_

"_What do you want?" Andrina slammed her hands down, gripping the side of the basin. _

_Ursula pursed her lips, and then snatched the string of pearls off Andrina's neck. "This will do!" she cackled._

"_Mother's pearls…" Andrina whispered._

_Ursula threw the potion to Andrina, who was still in shock. However, Andrina did catch it. Ursula swam off "Now I suggest you get out. I don't like company."_

_Still shocked, Andrina turned and swam home. She tucked the potion deep in her bag when she swam through the doorway._

"_Andrina?" Ariel swam up to her, arms behind her back._

"_What do you want?" Andrina hissed._

"_I'm really, really sorry Andrina. While you were gone, I fixed it. It's not as good, and I'm sorry. But it's in one piece again!"_

_Andrina picked up the pot Ariel handed her. It was in one piece again, and it's clear she tried to fix it. Andrina sighed. She took the pot and swam off._

_She'd save the potion for another day._

Andrina looked at the potion in her hand. Ariel may have been a nuisance sometimes, but she had always tried to fix everything. Even when she ran off during the ballet recital, Ariel had given her one of the necklaces she found on the shipwreck.

Andrina looked up at the surface. Maybe it was finally time to forgive Ariel. 


	17. Caution, Darling

**There's a lot I could say right now, but nothing that hasn't been said before. So,**

**The End, everyone. The End.**

"Did you save her?" Anita looked up at her mother, Andrina.

"Well, you first have to understand that I'm telling you this story. I want you to understand just how bad revenge is. I messed up, and I don't want you to ever, ever make the mistakes that I did." Andrina sighed, resting a hand on her daughter's red head. "That's when things went downward. It took so much convincing, so much reasoning to persuade Eric to let me near her. But I was committed to the idea that I had to make this right. Eventually, he brought out my sister. In a bucket. This is what I had done to my baby sister. I realized then: she didn't even want Seamus! She never meant to hurt me, not then, not now, not ever! But I refused to see that." Andrina sniffed, holding back tears, but continued. "I took out the potion and shouted, as loud as I could 'I WANT ARIEL TO BE A HUMAN AGAIN!' and poured the entire potion into the bucket."

"Then what happened?" Anita asked, cocking her head.

"Nothing." Andrina sighed.

"What do you mean, nothing?" Anita protested. "Where's the happy ending? There's always a happy ending!"

"Not this time." Andrina sighed. "We sat there, and waited. We watched the bucket. It didn't bubble, didn't react. Nothing happened! As the sun set, I came back."

"So she stayed sea foam?" Anita asked, big eyes looking up at her mother.

"So I assume. And Grandpa was so upset! I thought he'd be furious, I thought he'd beat me within an inch of my life. But he didn't. I told him the story, and didn't leave anything out. Once he knew, all he said was 'I knew humans were bad, I didn't think merpeople could do that to each other.' And swam off. That was it. From that day forward, he refuses to speak to me. He loves you, Anita, and he treats you with more love than you can possibly see. But not me anymore. The access to all his love for me died that day."

"Doesn't he have to love you? He's your daddy!" Anita asked.

"Oh, he still loves me." Andrina said. "But it's so covered up with grudges and anger that he can't access it anymore. So it's like it's not there."

Anita sighed. "I won't get revenge mommy. I know you want me to promise."

"Oh, I do!" Andrina turned to Anita and took her daughter's hands. "But what you say and what you do are so, so different! It doesn't matter what you promise me, 'cause it will never change! Don't get revenge, it's never worth it! If you forget everything else I say, remember that!"

"Mommy?" Anita cocked her twelve year old head.

"Yes, love?" Andrina said.

"Can I go outside?"

"Yes, love. Yes you can."  
>…<p>

Eric grabbed her hand. He had met many beautiful princesses, beautiful women before, but none could even hold a candle to the girl next to him.

She had a beautiful smile, and bright eyes. He could get lost in her eyes, they were as deep as the ocean. She was small for her age, but that just made her easier to pick up and spin around. She was full of love, life, and vigor.

"Come on Eric!" she took off down the beach, tearing up the sand. She leapt into the ocean, completely immersing herself. She smiled as he leapt in next to her, creating a large splash.

They laughed and splashed and swam around. Eric smiled, everything seemed right again. He hadn't felt this way…since that day. He was hopelessly in love.

"You're going to be queen." He turned to the girl. "Are you excited?"

"I'm more excited to marry you!" she smiled, swimming closer to him. Eric felt his heart swell.

He kissed her. "It does have a nice ring though. Queen…Ariel."

He wrapped an arm around her slight frame, red hair spilling over his arm.

There is no way to easily sum up a girl like his Ariel. She's lively, fun, beautiful, adorable, smart, clever, just, just perfect! Eric never wanted to lose her, or come even close to losing her at all! Never again. The two climbed up on the rock, and watched the sunset. Eric had been hunting for the right word to sum up everything that had happened to him, to her, to them. But as the sun set in front of them, he kissed her, and a word came to mind.

Extraordinary.


End file.
